Caught by the Past
by MandaMaru
Summary: First fanfiction-and I do suck at summaries.  Kantarou becomes the target for Raikou and Ibaragi, plotting to use his powers for their own plans.  Rated M for language, violence, and eventual HaruKan.    I do not own Tactics or the characters!
1. Chapter 1

"Rin, Pyo, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen!" Kantarou quickly chanted and brought his prayer beads up to his lips as a burst of energy dazzled against his closed eyelids. The demon lunging towards his unprotected body screeched in frustration and agony as it dissolved on contact with the golden glow of the young exorcist's spiritual power. Kantarou opened his eyes and then suddenly sagged to his knees with exhaustion as the pain in his chest finally began to recede. His scar was sometimes useful in detecting ogres and demons, but in times like these it was more trouble than it was worth. This was the third major exorcism today, and he was getting to the point where using his powers was becoming difficult. He just hoped there weren't any more cases today-he didn't know how much more his body could take. It didn't help that his normal support, in the form of the (admittedly quite useful) ogre-eating tengu he called his own, was absent. After the second exorcism today, Haruka had decided to leave, claiming boredom.

"These are small jobs, Kantarou. You are more than adequate to handle these, and it's a waste of my time when I am not permitted to destroy them. It's more trouble to hold back enough not to kill opponents like these in one blow," the tengu had said, looking down his long elegant nose at the shorter man. "I am going home to take a _nap_." Haruka had spread his glossy black wings wide and took off towards home, giving a casual wave without looking back. Kantarou couldn't really blame him-it was all true. He had been handling cases like these long before he had unsealed his tengu. It really wasn't fair to Haruka to make him come along just for company, although he really would have enjoyed his company just to have it. After the agonizing uncertainty of not knowing whether he would return or not once he regained his memories as the ogre-eating tengu, Kantarou just liked feeling his presence nearby. It made him feel whole.

He sighed and slowly pushed himself up to his feet one knee at a time, his breath still coming in short gasps from the exertion. The dull throbbing that had been threatening most of the day had finally made itself felt behind his eyes, and it wouldn't go away if he kept pushing himself this way. Using up one's spiritual power took a lot out strength out of a body, even more so with powers as strong as Kantarou's. He wondered, not for the first time this day, if there was something behind all of the cases he had been running into. It worried him a little, but then he would be a poor strategist if he didn't see conspiracies in everything. He swayed a little on his feet, and his head began to feel as if it weighed more with every passing moment. It was time to head home-although at this point he really wished Haruka was around to give him a lift. He pushed open the door of the crumbling stone house the demon had taken refuge in, and then picked his way carefully through a seedy-looking garden as the sun began setting in earnest. It would be just his luck to trip and hurt himself on rubble after managing to stay relatively unscathed through multiple demonic assaults. He ran a hand through his sweat-dampened silver hair and smiled a little as a cooling breeze passed through the garden, relieving some of the unrelenting heat the day had produced. At least he was putting money on the table this way, and more money meant actual food. Kantarou's eyes closed in bliss as he thought longingly of expensive sushi and beef….real meat! Not needing further motivation, he managed to push himself through the rest of the garden and out into the street. A series of stone walls ran through these neighborhoods and extended through the one his house was in, so he had something to lean against as he dragged himself slowly towards home.

Unfortunately, a respite from work was not in the cards today. Haruka was enjoying the last glimmers of sunlight as they picked up sparkles on the light-warmed roof, and so he was the first to hear frantic footsteps hitting against the ground as they ran into the yard. He sat up and leaned over to make sure there were no immediate threats, and relaxed a little as he saw a frightened-looking servant knocking at their front door. It looked like another job for Kantarou based on the servant's behavior. Haruka smirked-at least they were going to be eating well for the next several days. It couldn't be bad for Kantarou to get used to working hard every once in a while now, could it? His master had honed his skills at getting out of work to perfection, so it gave Haruka a little satisfaction to see them fail. He rose to his feet while on the roof and stretched luxuriously, even to his wingtips before shaking them out and sending a few inky feathers floating on the breeze. He might as well speed up the process by picking up his master directly. Tensing his wings, he leaped off the roof and into the darkening sky, his black eyes perfectly able to see in the dark. It helped that Kantarou was so unique looking though- his silver hair and white and red hakama would show up in the dark like a spotlight to the tengu. _Like fine metal caught by moonlight_, Haruka found himself thinking. He liked things that shimmered best, so it was pleasing to him that his master came to him with those qualities. The man's persistent and demanding nature irritated him but endeared him more at the same time. Even with his memories returned, Kantarou's presence drew him more strongly than it repelled. They were both still waiting to see what outcome the pull between them held.

As luck would have it, Haruka spotted his master walking very slowly only a few streets away from their house. He frowned as he drew closer, noticing Kantarou was leaning against the wall heavily and his face seemed intent on where his feet were going. It was probably just his way of making a play for sympathy that would be underlined by his growling stomach-Haruka could easily imagine the pleading face the young exorcist would give him. It would be exactly like the man to practice his act in the street before applying it at home. _Haruuuukaaa…..soo hungry! Carry me…._he snorted and shook his head in feigned annoyance. In reality he had gotten so used to the way his master whined and acted like a small child over anything relating to food or youkai that he found he missed its absence when Kantarou wasn't home. The tengu quickly cupped his wings and dove to land with a flurry of dust next to Kantarou, who had stopped walking and now leaned his back against the wall, watching for him with one hand up to shield his eyes. It was always eerie to Haruka how Kantarou could sense his presence so easily.

"Hey Haruka….done napping already? Has Youko used my hard-earned money to cook something delicious and expensive for dinner?" the young exorcist asked hopefully. Haruka noticed that even with the expected question, Kantarou didn't really seem to be his usual aggravating self-normally such a question would have come with shouting, whining, or the other man clinging to Haruka's clothes (most often a combination of the three) while doing so. The exorcist's crimson eyes looked duller without his usual spark of mischief; and he didn't move beyond leaning his weight a little more heavily against the wall as he looked up at Haruka with a small smile. The ogre-eating tengu took a closer look at his young master, feeling a little concerned. Although Haruka was often annoyed with Kantarou, it just highlighted the strength of the feelings the silver-haired man stirred in him. He was determined not to let Kantarou get wind of his concern, though-he was manipulative enough to try to take advantage of any weakness Haruka showed. It suited the other man's gleefully obnoxious personality. Still….he was being a little too well-behaved. Haruka didn't take long to decide he preferred the normal Kantarou-the man was too resilient to feel down very often. He let out a long-suffering sigh and looked put upon as he glared at his master. Kantarou managed to look a little amused at hearing his tengu sigh like an overworked nanny.

"Hmmmm….I think I'll carry you back to the house. It will be quicker that way. It looks like you are going to have another job before you can eat though."

"Hai…thanks for the ride." Haruka tried unsuccessfully to suppress another little pang of worry at how meek the man was being. It was probably good for Kantarou to work hard enough to actually feel tired once in a while, he told himself again. "I'll come with you this time though…just because it will be faster if we fly." That's what he told himself, anyway. Not giving the smaller man a chance to say anything else, Haruka moved forwards and quickly grabbed Kantarou around the waist with both hands, and then leaped skywards. It was another measure of the other man's tiredness that he didn't squirm in Haruka's arms or use the opportunity to cling tightly onto him as he normally would.

Kantarou shivered slightly in Haruka's arms, the evening breeze rapidly chilling as they rose in the air. He wished, without much hope, that this last job was something that could be taken care of tomorrow. He was starting to get a bad feeling that had nothing to do with just physical exhaustion. Sometimes his spiritual energy gave him flashes of intuition that had kept him out of trouble (and just as often gotten him into it) before-he was getting that sort of feeling again the closer to home they drew. At least he was with Haruka now, though. The tengu's presence always made Kantarou feel stronger and more peaceful at the same time-he wasn't sure why. Perhaps it was having someone to protect, or perhaps it was a stronger feeling than that. Having the person he had devoted his life to finding staying by his side probably had something to with it. He didn't dwell on the why of it as long as he knew Haruka would stay with him. He didn't really deserve more than that anyway in this lifetime-not with his past. A single lifetime never seemed like enough to atone for the damage he had caused. He mentally shrugged and squashed the rising thoughts before any actual memories could surface, deciding that too much thinking couldn't possibly be good for a man's health. Instead he closed his eyes and relaxed in Haruka's arms as they flew towards home in the darkening sky. Although only a few minutes went by, he didn't feel Haruka pull him into his chest a little more tightly to keep his body warm.

All too soon (in Haruka's opinion, anyway), they landed in their small grassy courtyard and he had to gently shake his master awake before setting him down. Kantarou gave Haruka a gentle smile that made the tengu's legs feel weak, and patted him on the arm before making his way slowly into the house where their visitor was waiting. The servant was young and terrified looking, even sitting down at the table in their small reception room. Mousy brown hair and eyes didn't reveal much else to the world. The tea Youko had poured out for him sat untouched, cooling in front of him. After taking a quick glance into the reception room, Kantarou had hurriedly changed from his dirty hakama and had managed to snatch a minute to splash his head under cold water to revive himself a little. He came downstairs and then took a moment to study the young man, unnoticed from his position at the door before stepping all of the way into the room. Sliding the door shut, he formally bowed and then knelt at the table. As usual, Youko and Haruka sat with their backs pressed against the reception room's shogi screen door, unashamedly eavesdropping.

"I am Kantarou Ichinomiya. How may I help you? If you don't already know, I am an exorcist and priest, and also a folklorist. I can perform exorcisms and banish evil spirits and demons-if your problem is supernatural it is something I can try to help you with," his voice smooth as silk as he introduced himself in his most charming sales pitch voice. No matter how tired he felt, when it came to youkai Kantarou was always ready and willing to do something; a position both of his companions felt would get him into deep trouble someday. It was a position that had proved valid on several occasions already. Haruka and Youko sighed silently as they listened to the familiar wheedling tone Kantarou adopted with every potential client, although secretly Haruka felt a little relieved. Kantarou couldn't be feeling that badly if he was willing to take on another job that easily, right? _Wait…if he thinks there is a youkai involved or a big bonus to be had he would agree to anything_. The tengu resisted the urge to smack himself in the face for thinking anything different. A superior being should know better.

Back in the room, the servant finally spoke up, keeping his eyes on the table the entire time.

"M..my household requires someone with your talents, Mr. Ichinomiya. Our estate has always had rumors of being haunted by something…the usual sort that go with old homes…but lately strange things have been happening that are making my master and mistress terrified. The walls are marked with claws, things in locked rooms are destroyed savagely, and…lately…noises." The boy shivered, looking very young. "Whatever it is, it isn't human….and it has started attacking the family itself…just small things for now, but..they haven't left the house themselves since things started happening…and I don't know who else to ask for help..," the servant gulped visibly and looked up at Kantarou for the first time, beseeching. "Please help us! They need you, Mr. Ichinomiya. We are all scared that something bad is going to happen soon if these events get any worse. Whatever it is…is keeping the family from leaving the house to seek anyone. Please…please say you will come tonight. Please!" he cried, sounding close to tears. Kantarou looked at him soberly for a few minutes, his face looking much older than its normal childish appearance before nodding his head in acceptance. He smiled a little sadly and then stood up.

"Well, I will do whatever is in my power to help your household. First I will have to see for myself what has been happening-and the sooner the better. If you are ready, I am willing to go with you tonight." Despite his words, he felt his former feelings of uneasiness harden into a definitively bad feeling. Something was almost certainly going to happen if he went tonight. He was glad Haruka and Youko couldn't tell what he was thinking sometimes-they would probably refuse to let him go. It was part of Kantarou's own personal penance to atone for his past by helping humans and youkai whenever he was able…something else Haruka and Youko didn't know about his abnormal persistence when it came to cases like this. He smiled down at the boy and put a hand on his shoulder briefly. "I'm going to collect any materials I may need, and then we can go. I will do what I can to help, although I can't promise how things will work out." The boy looked up gratefully, and nodded.

"I'm sure you will be able to help a great deal, Mr. Ichinomiya. Thank you so much." No one saw the sudden smile twist the boy's lips into something hard and cruel and much older than his appearance. _I can guarantee it_, _Kantarou Ichinomiya._ An unseen watcher played his first move and waited to see his game unfold.


	2. Chapter 2

Kantarou did take a brief moment of pleasure in sliding open the shogi door quickly enough as he left that Youko and Haruka fell backwards into the room. He scampered out before they could recover and retaliate, and headed for the stairs, chuckling as he went. Now…how best to prepare? Somehow the feeling he had been getting all evening made him think this wouldn't be an easy case. It made him decide to at least put on a good show. He pulled out his formal exorcist robes, and took off his normal red and white hakama. The elaborate crimson and silver robes patterned with chrysanthemums made his lean frame look a little more impressive, anyway-he would take what he could get. He made sure he had plenty of ofuda, the charms he used for barriers and defensive attacks, and his prayer beads. For some reason, as he moved to leave the room he picked up an old sutra that he had been studying in relation to a historical youkai story. It was supposed to be reference material for one of his books, but he had relegated it to the bottom of a stack of papers. Still, it was odd that his fingers had plucked that particular sutra-his fingers had just seemed to stick for a moment as they moved across his desk, and it had been there in his hand. This particular sutra had been used for banishing a powerful demon into a sealed boulder after it had decimated an entire village. He shrugged and smiled to himself-who was he to ignore intuition (technically, he ignored it quite often). He quickly and carefully tucked the sutra into the breast of his robes, just in case. Leaving his room, he hopped down the stairs and then slowed to a dignified walk once he got close to the reception room. Haruka had of course noticed Kantarou's rush down the stairs, with his superior hearing, and he raised an eyebrow and smirked at his master's antics. Life just seemed so much more comfortable when Kantarou was his normal immature self. Haruka didn't want it any other way; though life would also have been much less annoying if the man was just normal.

"Yosh then…Haruka, let's go," Kantarou demanded. He sounded and looked a bit better, although Haruka could tell he was still tired from the earlier cases. Hopefully this case could be over and done with quickly. Kantarou told Youko not to wait up, just in case-and he couldn't resist telling her to make sure there was food left out since he was bringing in hard-earned money. Out of respect for his long day, she restrained herself from strangling him before he went out and satisfied herself with giving him a withering glare that could have burned through glass. Home matters taken care of, the exorcist stepped through the front door after the young servant, and Haruka followed. The sun had completely set, and the street was dimly lit by lanterns at the entrances of the neighboring houses. Normally the night was soothing to Haruka, but looking at Kantarou's slender back and silver hair moving away from him into the darkness gave him a sudden chill. It seemed too much like he was fading away-like he was looking at a ghost. He hurried his footsteps unobtrusively and wound up pacing alongside his master instead of behind him. He told himself wanting to get closer had nothing to do with it-it was just easier to step in if any trouble arose if he was close by. Yeah, right. It didn't help that Kantarou glanced up at him every once in a while with his ruby eyes and smiled at him. It also didn't help that it was the young exorcist's patented smirk of mischief-it made the man look downright diabolic. Haruka couldn't tell if he was planning something or not. Being worn out didn't seem to affect his normal personality for long, it seemed. The tengu doubted that anything really could affect that part of him. Haruka had the feeling if they were not following someone to an affluent part of the city, Kantarou would have forced him to carry him piggyback or bridal style all the way. It almost gave him something to look forward to on the way home. Almost. Haruka was enjoyably distracted by thoughts of his master as they walked on towards an older section of the city.

The object of Haruka's interest had his own distractions-mostly trying to keep his feet moving in front of each other and trying to act like his normal self. He was usually so energetic that even he began to feel that his normal self was obnoxious, just from the effort of trying to act like it. The ominous feeling he had been noticing since the last case was getting worse the further they walked, and Kantarou was starting to feel oppressed by it. His head was starting to pound dully again, and he wondered if he would be able to solve the problem without using too much power. At the rate he was going, he wasn't going to be able to do anything for the next couple of days with the current drain on his body. He gave Haruka another sidelong glance. There was no point in worrying _him_ over something that couldn't be helped-it wasn't like the tengu could exorcise a ghost or demon (although he could destroy things violently if the situation required it), which was what the situation sounded like. He wished he knew more about what they were walking into. He also wished that they were not following someone, so he could have begged Haruka to carry him-not realizing Haruka knew him well enough to have already thought of that scenario. Kantarou shrugged mentally, already planning a next time, and instead steeled himself to keep walking without staggering. The servant seemed to be intent on taking them to one of the oldest (and least populated) parts of the wealthier set of the city, and the lanterns began to decrease in number as they kept walking. After an hour or so of steady walking (and wobbling in Kantarou's case), they finally reached a set of massive iron gates hiding a pathway in an otherwise deserted neighborhood populated with crumbling walls and broken paving stones. It set the young exorcist's teeth on edge just looking at the gate-it had streaked red over time, and in the dim light offered by the lantern set in one side, it looked like it was bleeding rust. He shuddered a little but resolutely moved forward to stand in front of it. He might be a lot of things, but at least no one could call him a coward. Well, maybe Haruka and Youko could, but he at least wasn't a coward when it counted. Their guide pushed open one side of the gate, which groaned and screeched like some metal beast in pain-_just to add to the mood_, Kantarou couldn't resist thinking, and beckoned them inside. Haruka and Kantarou walked in side-by-side, perhaps a little closer than necessary, but both were feeling distinctly uneasy now. The slamming growl of the gate shutting by itself behind them didn't help at all. It seemed like they had just been eaten by the jaws of the gate, and really, didn't things always go downhill from this sort of an entrance? Kantarou was starting to wonder if this was supposed to be a dramatic set-up, or if there was really someone who enjoyed this sort of ambiance for entertaining guests. He just couldn't decide on which. It would have been an excellent time to decide to postpone the job until daylight, when it might be safer. Unfortunately, Kantarou was far too curious a man by nature to let this case go now without finding out what was going on. As they walked down a gently curving but overgrown pathway, he kept his eyes on examining his surroundings and making sure they didn't lose their guide on the dark path up to the brooding manor house-he never noticed the bells on his bracelet begin a steady trembling. It could almost have been attributed to the motion from walking-but not quite. They continued to walk forward in the night, and the lanterns behind them faded out and disappeared, leaving complete darkness to swallow up the path they had taken.

"_Ah, finally…he's coming. You know what to do, yes, Ibaragi? Make sure the tengu cannot interfere. It is Ichinomiya we want to take care of this time-we can always fetch my ogre-eating tengu to play properly next time…after we get what I want." _A faint voice chuckled dryly from within one of the locked rooms in the very manor that the exorcist and tengu in question were approaching. He could sense the intense spiritual energy of the exorcist as they approached the house, and he found himself respecting the young man just a little bit more. They had planted several demons to get him to exhaust his powers, weakening him beforehand, and he still had enough left to announce his presence without his even trying. It just made him more tempting-his power was glowing like an all-you-can-eat sign to those waiting in the manor. The owner of the voice smiled with dark anticipation. The game was so much more fun with unpredictable opponents-he so hoped that the exorcist would hold up long enough to be able to put some of his larger plans in motion. "_Ibaragi? Is everything ready for our guests? They must be getting curious by now._ _I think you should show them in immediately once they reach the front." _

Far underground, below the actual manor house, a striking woman with long brown hair was sitting in a small stone room. The walls and floor were ancient weathered stone, the flagstones polished smooth with time. The room itself was bare except for a single large stone pillar carved out of a boulder with an ancient seal striping the weathered sides, crouching from ceiling to floor in the center of the low-ceilinged space. She smiled into a polished black mirror as she held it up, and nodded her acknowledgement to the master of this particular game. She had so been looking forward to meeting their two guests again-it was extremely kind of her own master to call them over to play. She pouted as she remembered that she was only playing with the exorcist today-the tengu was for later. Still….she blew onto the mirror's surface and it rippled and twisted to show her the approaching guests near the front of the manor. Kantarou Ichinomiya….the exorcist….as she looked more closely at him, she felt a little happier. Although he wasn't as tall and handsome as the dark-haired tengu, his exotic silver hair and vermilion eyes made him more interesting to look at the longer one stared. It was good she didn't have to kill him right now-it would be such a waste of rare beauty. Ibaragi smiled widely to herself, mouth opening just enough to reveal her fangs had lengthened into wicked points from her excitement. They were so close now….it was time to welcome them properly.

The servant finally reached the front door of the manor, which naturally was also massive and forbidding. At this point, Kantarou would have been extremely surprised (and a little disappointed) if it had looked tasteful or welcoming. Haruka walked up the steps and paused, waiting for his master who was lagging behind. Kantarou shook his head and forced his body up the last few steps, trying not to show how much his legs were shaking after all of the exertion. He was starting to think Haruka suspected something was wrong with him, since the tengu kept glancing at him with that worried look on his aristocratic face. He also kept hovering by Kantarou's side, instinctively moving closer in a protective gesture. The tengu would of course deny it and move away if it was pointed out to him. It was just another side of Haruka that the exorcist found appealing, and it brought a small smile to his face. He finally reached the top of the steps without panting or huffing for breath (which he was proud of), and they both turned together to step foot into the dark stone manor.

Naturally as soon as they crossed the threshold, the doors slammed soundly shut behind them. Haruka whirled and immediately tried to force them back open, but Kantarou called softly for him to stop, holding one hand up in front of the tengu. The exorcist had stopped in his tracks and was slowly looking around, trying to find any details that could tell him what was going on. He placed one hand on his chest, expecting the usual pain, but his scar remained quiet. Both of them noticed with growing alarm that the servant they had been following seemed to have completely disappeared in the short time between opening the doors and being trapped in.

"Hey! Boy! Where are you? We still need to talk to your master and mistress….Oi!..Ooii!" Kantarou cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted. Silence followed except for the echoes of his voice reaching the corners of the vast walls and high ceilings. He felt a chill crawl up the back of his spine, thinking not for the first time he should really listen to his intuition one of these days. Otherwise it was a wasted talent. He mentally apologized to whichever kami had given him that particular gift-he probably didn't put it to its best use. He felt rather than saw Haruka move up next to him so that their sides were almost touching again. With Haruka here with him, he really should just try to get the job done quickly. He was probably safer right now than he had been all day thanks to the tengu's presence. Kantarou sighed deeply and leaned briefly against his tengu, wishing again they could just go home and eat.

"Haruka, let's find out what is going on so we can leave. I don't want to split up to search though (it's too clichéd and never ends well besides), so we will look by floor and go from room to room. We need to stay close, fine?" Kantarou wore one of his rare serious expressions, making it seem like he really meant to find out what was going on. The man looked almost impressive when he did that, his finely sculpted features much more noticeable when he wasn't making strange faces all of the time. Haruka sighed and decided to go with it. If things become too hairy, he could always fly them out-that was the main reason he was here after all, wasn't it? Kantarou ruined the serious demon-hunting mood somewhat by spinning in a circle and then pointing randomly to decide which direction to search. It was such a huge place he knew he was virtually guaranteed results no matter where he wound up pointing. Unfortunately, he realized he had ended up pointing at an extremely dark corridor that seemed to slope downwards and out of sight of the main entrance hall.

"Um…ne, Haruka, why don't we start somewhere…lighter?" The tengu ignored his master this time, and gripped him firmly by the arm and started towing him towards the hallway. The sooner they started this search, the sooner they could get out of this place. It was even affecting _his_ nerves, and he was hard to rattle. He honestly just wanted to get Kantarou and himself out of here in one piece. Both of them felt their unease solidify into certainty, but they didn't hesitate (Haruka had Kantarou's arm, so the exorcist couldn't stop even if he wanted to) as they made their way into the dark. It was one of those times that they knew they would regret not following their instincts, but they were in too deep to stop now without getting to the bottom of the deepening mystery.

As soon as they set foot into the corridor, Kantarou felt a sudden stabbing pain in the scar in his chest. "Aah…" he gasped as he unconsciously clutched at his robes over his scar, tripping and falling to his knees. Haruka immediately grabbed him tighter and held him up by his arm, peering anxiously at his face.

"Kantarou! What is it? Is something there?" Haruka spoke while his eyes began scanning the corridor for enemies. He already knew what this reaction meant. The young exorcist nodded his head in confirmation, but the pain was so intense he couldn't keep himself upright. He sagged in Haruka's grip and curled up around himself, crying out once before he bit his lip to keep quiet, and tried to will his body to work around the pain like it normally did. His heart was starting to feel like something was trying to rip it out through his chest. Haruka stopped looking around when he didn't find any immediate threats or attacks and focused on Kantarou, starting to realize that this wasn't a normal reaction. Usually his master could still function through the effects of his scar-it was the only reason Haruka agreed that having it was somewhat useful. "Kantarou…oi! Do we need to get out of here?" he asked urgently, gripping his shoulder tightly and shaking him a little. As if shaking would make him reply quicker.

Kantarou struggled to respond, but the pain had quickly increased to the point where he felt he could no longer draw in a breath of air. _Shit! Haruka! This is bad…something extremely powerful is here…I can't handle it like this…_sparkles began to dance in front of his vision as he began to lose consciousness from a lack of air. He didn't even have enough to cry out at the pain in his chest, which felt like someone was succeeding in tearing him open slowly. A few lines of moisture trickled from his eyes without conscious thought as he fought to breathe. Haruka knelt and cradled him, hoping to soothe the pain a little and restore his breathing.

He had never seen Kantarou incapacitated this badly before-normally the scar didn't hurt him badly enough to make him collapse like this. He held his master a little tighter against himself as the other man gasped for breath and arched backwards in agony, his eyes wide open but not seeing anything, not even Haruka. That was too much-he just needed to get Kantarou out of here, quickly. The tengu had never thought about how much it would bother him to see the exorcist in pain like this-it was making his feelings start to slowly spiral out of the tight control he normally kept them in since regaining his memories. He felt helpless frustration and fury bubble up inside of him as _his _Kantarou coughed and fought for air in his arms. It was just like the young exorcist to be the reason he couldn't stay looking calm and collected, like an ogre-eating tengu should. He stood up suddenly and picked up his master completely, still cradling him, and turned around to get out of the corridor-only to find that the way out was no longer there. A blank stone wall, just as old looking and as solid as the ones surrounding him, stood in front of him.

"Shit!" he cried with feeling, fury beginning to well up inside of him as Kantarou's struggles to breathe become weaker. "Hang in there, Kantarou…we are going to get out of here," he growled, mantling his wings protectively in front of his body as he tried to decide what to do.


	3. Chapter 3

Kantarou dimly heard Haruka's voice through the mist that was creeping over his senses. The pain was smothering him like a never-ending wave of dark water. He struggled to stay conscious just a little bit longer, but the pain stabbed again into in his chest with savage claws; it was every bit as bad as the night he had received the injury in the first place. _What if…this is..._an idea tried to force its way to the front of his mind as he tried to hold on to his mind just a little longer, but his last thought remained unfinished as the approaching blackness finally swallowed him. Haruka felt Kantarou suddenly go limp in his arms, and began to feel panicked. His fury faded a little as he started to seriously fear for the other man's safety. There had to be a way out somewhere-he just had to get the exorcist away from here. This reaction was definitely not normal, and he wasn't about to let his infuriating master stay and explore this place anymore, regardless of how much the so-called household needed his help. This was starting to seem more like a trap-he had no way of knowing Kantarou had been wondering something similar earlier that day. If he had, this would probably never have gotten this far. He had never seen Kantarou react like this to a spirit or even with a powerful ogre or youkai. What would happen if his irritating little master died? Thinking about it made his memories and emotions both surge up into his mind all at once in a tidal wave of fury, hate, red, desire, and blood, with Kantarou entangled within all of it. _Shit…shit…shit! _Haruka's claws suddenly extended and his sable eyes grew even darker as his pupils dilated and contracted, trying to control the flood of emotions. The last time this had happened he had almost killed the exorcist. This wasn't the time to let them take over, not while Kantarou was helpless in his grasp. The claws twitched, tearing the sleeve of the exorcist's robes and revealing a stripe of pale skin. The tengu closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, trying not to lose himself. If he lost control of himself now, there would be no way to save his master. He wasn't sure he could handle it if the exorcist died. Whether it was for good or bad, the irritating man had wormed his way into the tengu's core of existence. There was no life as Haruka without Kantarou, even if the contract wasn't broken.

He held the exorcist closer against his chest and, taking a last look at the stone wall where the corridor entrance had been, turned and started walking further down the sloping stone hallway. He cursed continuously under his breath as he went, stumbling on the rough stone flagstones of the floor. The man in his arms was still warm, but his being unmoving like this made him a dead weight that slowed Haruka down. He looked down at Kantarou to see the young exorcist still unconscious, his normally pale skin gray with pain and lightly sheened with sweat. He did note with small relief that he was at least breathing, but it was rough and too strained. He could also feel Kantarou's heart beating wildly and too fast against his own chest while he walked onwards. A growing desperation was rising in Haruka to just get his master out of the cursed place before his body gave out. He picked up his pace, trying to ignore the solid wooden doors that studded the hallway. They could be ways out, but they could also be holding back whatever was affecting Kantarou so badly. He couldn't risk it just yet-he would put the other man down somewhere and come back if he had to.

Ibaragi sighed with content as she watched the drama unfolding within the corridor from her mirror. It was always pleasant when events ran according to plan. It had been a stroke of genius on her master's part to have her locate the ogre that had given Kantarou Ichinomiya his scar, still sealed within the stone pillar. Even she hadn't anticipated the effect her own power and the lingering miasma of the sealed ogre would have on the exorcist-it was gratifying to see how sensitive he was. The best part, to her mind, was that he had no memories of what had actually happened when he had received the scar. The truth was always better-didn't people say that the truth could set you free? She would be doing the exorcist a favor by showing him what had actually happened so long ago. He would even get a chance to redress his past by exorcising again the youkai responsible for it all. A humanitarian gesture really, with the added benefit of using his spiritual power for their other plans. All in all, it seemed like a promising evening of entertainment for her and her master. And now it was close to the time to collect her prize away from the hovering tengu. She had planned this so carefully-it was going to be much more amusing this time around for her to trap the ogre-eating creature and then destroy his master in front of his eyes. If the exorcist wouldn't release the tengu from his contract, as stubborn as he was, then driving the tengu into enough of a rage could still possibly bring out his true power. It was only fair that the irritating young man help them with it, since he had refused them so many times before. This time his spiritual energy could be put to good use-nothing would go to waste. Ah, Kantarou Ichinomiya…she did look forward to seeing him in person again. A glance in the mirror showed they were close enough for her to reach quickly. It was time to go to work.

Ibaragi put her mirror down on a raised part of the platform so she that could still look into it, and raised both of her arms over her head in a gesture of summoning. Enormous black twisted vines, studded with fang-like thorns erupted through the solid stone slab floors to coil in front of her, waiting like faithful pets-and then she sent them forth in a single violent gesture. They shot through the stone of the manor as if they were water, seeking her prey for her and feeling where they were from her connected senses as she examined her mirror. They twisted and roiled as they raced closer and closer towards the unknowing tengu and the unconscious exorcist.

_Something is coming….._ripples in the blackness he was held down in stirred his awareness, and he felt another awareness approaching him. It was close to the source of the pain in his scar. Kantarou stirred slightly back towards waking as he felt a dark power surging closer towards him-towards them. It felt like a second heartbeat. _I have…to…to warn Haruka….wake up, damn it…..Wake up!_ He tried to force himself to wake up through the pain, and finally succeeded in slowly opening his eyes. It was like swimming up from the bottom of a deep pool, and he felt like closing them again just from the effort. His chest still felt as if he was being torn apart, but he noticed that he was able to breathe if he tried. Haruka jumped when Kantarou took a gasping breath and coughed weakly, and then almost dropped him when he saw that he was awake. The young exorcist's eyes were open, but they were focused clearly on him now. Although he was still in pain, he took another strained breath and gripped Haruka's jacket tightly.

"Ha….ru…ka….Haru..ka," he coughed, "something…is…coming. Whatever it is….it is..coming fast." He closed his eyes, exhausted from the effort of speaking. His hands still held Haruka's jacket tightly.

Haruka didn't even have time to feel relieved his master was awake before realizing what Kantarou was saying. He cursed feelingly out loud this time, and broke into a run. He just hoped to find a place to make a stand that wasn't completely open on all sides-he couldn't fight with Kantarou in his arms like this. He needed somewhere safe or at least a little sheltered to keep his master so he could try to get them out of there. Haruka wished bitterly he had acted on the foreboding he had felt earlier-although it wouldn't have helped any even if he had known Kantarou had felt the same way. The exorcist was nothing if not stubborn when it came to his ideals about youkai. Neither of them had expected tonight might finally be the day his ideals cost him his life. Haruka reminded himself never to say things like that out loud to Kantarou again-it seemed too much like a curse right now. The corridor still sloped downwards, but now curved as they ran. It seemed like they were spiraling down deeper into the bowels of the manor that had captured them. Haruka had retracted his wings and was running as fast as he could, his keen eyes searching for a place to make a stand. A crumbling niche against the wall across from another heavy wooden door caught his attention, and he raced for it with Kantarou squeezed in his arms. The exorcist's eyes were still closed, but he was tracking the presence as it moved closer, much faster than they were going. His fingers tightened briefly in Haruka's coat and then let go. There wasn't any more time.

"Haruka…put me down..we can't run any farther," he whispered. Kantarou felt them stop moving, but he didn't see the tengu stare at his face with an unreadable expression, before pulling him tightly into a rough embrace. "Wha…," and his lips were stopped by Haruka's pressing against his own suddenly. Just as quickly, the warmth of the other man's body was gone and Haruka had carefully set him down inside the limited shelter of the little niche. Kantarou didn't even know if he had imagined the tengu's actions or not. He found himself wishing that he hadn't though-if everything ended tonight, it would be nice to know that someone had cared about him at least a little. He just hadn't expected it might be Haruka-especially not after witnessing the return of his memories. They both still expected the tengu to eventually snap under the strain of his memories and take Kantarou's life with him. It seemed like a perfectly good way of going to the exorcist, by the hands of something he created and loved. It was much better than being alone. Although at this point neither of them had expected Haruka's feelings towards Kantarou to turn so confused and tangled in with his past memories and emotions. The sudden throb of power as the dark presence moved even closer resonated in the exorcist's chest and broke his train of thought, and he groaned as the pain stabbed harder with the proximity. His eyes suddenly opened wide as he realized where the presence was coming from-it wasn't approaching from the corridor. _Shit! _

"Haru-!" he tried to cry out a warning just as the wall of the niche exploded outwards into seeking tentacles of vines and his breath was choked off.


	4. Chapter 4

Haruka heard Kantarou's voice cut off suddenly, and he whirled around to see the wall of the niche explode, sending shards of stone and dust flying as huge vines whipped outwards. He was forced to shield his eyes, and when he lowered his arm the vines had already wrapped tightly around the exorcist's body. Kantarou tried to put up a fight, but he wasn't strong enough to free himself as the vines coiled and tightened around his body, squeezing his ribs and silencing any potential for chanting sutras. The blade-like black thorns tore into his clothing as he continued to struggle, slicing through heavy silk and skin like paper. _So much for my best ceremonial robes_, he managed to think wryly to himself as he felt blood trickle down his side from some of the deeper cuts. Haruka had immediately launched a vicious attack against the vines holding Kantarou, but they moved like they could think and see for themselves, thorns rising up to block his attacks and slash at his body in response. He snarled in fury as one managed to wrap itself around his upper body, binding his arms against his sides. The thorns bit into his arms and back, cutting deeply as he strained to free at least his claws. He growled again in frustrated rage-yet again he had failed at helping Kantarou when he was needed. Haruka spared a minute to glance over and see if he was still holding his own, just to see that the exorcist had gone limp again in the vines' tight grasp. _Dammit…not again! Why am I so weak!_ He stopped fighting and closed his eyes, letting his knees buckle so that the vines held his body upright. He needed to think of a way to get them both out of here-both of them should have been dead by now if the vines had been trying to kill them. If Haruka hadn't stood a chance against them, it should have been short work to finish the two of them off. Instead, they were only being held from escaping. As soon as he stopped attacking, the vines didn't attack either. There was definitely something else going on in this house-and he wished it were as simple as fighting off malevolent vegetation. He opened his eyes and looked back over at Kantarou, praying that the exorcist was still alive. A single red eye met his look, winked slowly, and then closed again as the smaller man continued to play at being unconscious. Haruka took a deep breath, irritation and overwhelming relief welling up. The damned man could have given him a sign or something before playing dead. But it seemed that Kantarou had the same realization that this was only leading to something else-he was probably trying to act helpless to get as much of a chance as he could. Haruka was relieved that his master still had enough left in him to be willing to put up a fight. He would always bet on Kantarou in a supernatural battle when the stakes turned serious-the man's spiritual powers made up for his irritating personality in a situation like this. He had never had a master before that would fight with him and for him-he was used to being put in harm's way so that someone else could benefit. Kantarou was never like that. It troubled him and unnerved him to be in a situation where he had to actually worry about the other man. At least he knew they would be fighting together, for the time being. He just hoped that the exorcist could just hang on a bit longer. For now, he could only wait and see what Kantarou was going to do. Now that both of them were trapped, the vines had stopped moving and were simply holding them in place like steel chains. Haruka didn't like it. He felt like they were just like fruit waiting to be plucked dumbly from a tree sitting like this. The tengu hoped fervently that his odd little master had something up his sleeves.

Kantarou himself felt bad for worrying Haruka, but he had hoped that acting unconscious might allow the vines to loosen up just enough for him to use his binding spell. He was already in bad shape from using so much of his spiritual power on the earlier cases, and it wasn't being helped by the steady agony burning in his chest. A sudden thought made his stomach turn to ice-what if all of this was because someone was after Haruka again? Kantarou refused to think about losing him again. He would throw his own life down for the tengu's if it came to it. Anything but the pain of being left alone again, of failing with other's lives at stake. He gritted his teeth. This case was bringing back memories he wished would stay buried. Now wasn't the time to think about past failures-he refused to think about failing with Haruka. Renewed motivation lent him a little borrowed strength, and he began pulling against the vines carefully to see if he could move. The vines hadn't loosened much around him, but they had lost their tension when he pretended to fall unconscious again (though it honestly wasn't hard for him to pretend at this point). He could just move his arms up and down a little, so he worked on freeing his hands to at least perform the nine word binding chant. There wasn't much he could do about the thorns except to try to ignore being stabbed whenever he moved. Kantarou tried to be an optimist, so he just shrugged mentally and figured that a little more blood would probably help get his arms free if it made them a little slick. A glance over at Haruka showed that he seemed to have stopped fighting for now, and the exorcist prayed that the tengu would wait for just a few minutes before trying anything. He needed Haruka in one piece to get them both out of there-Kantarou had a feeling he would need to be carried regardless of how this fight turned out. He smirked to himself a little. It would serve the tengu right the next time he tried to tell him hard work was healthy.

While he was thinking, his hands were busy trying to slide out of the grip the vines had on his body. His hands had become slippery with blood and sweat, and he finally felt them sliding out of the thorny embrace. Once both hands were free, he took another look at Haruka. The tengu was watching him with an unreadable expression, but his eyes looked worried. It must be torture for him to be the helpless one for once. Kantarou winked at him again and then held up his newly freed hands, wiggling the fingers to show the tengu. Haruka glowered at him then, hating the sight of the red staining the exorcist's hands. It excited his emotions and memories too much right now. Kantarou just smiled a little, and then gingerly fished his prayer beads out of the mess of his shredded robes. It was a good thing that plants didn't actually have brains or eyes, he thought to himself as he arranged the beads around his fingers. Normally an ogre or spirit wouldn't just sit still while he readied himself to bind them after all-he dared to hope that perhaps they could get out of this mess with a minimum of trouble after all. The young exorcist closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to clear his mind a little. He didn't have much energy left, so he didn't know if he would be able to perform the binding a second time. He had to do it properly his first try. The pain in his chest was an ever-present distraction, and he had to force his mind to ignore it and concentrate on the flow of spiritual power within his own body. The binding chant required a pure state of concentration and power to be effective, and his mind instinctively fell into the familiar pattern of pushing away the discomfort and allowing the outside world to fade. The vines holding up his body, the cuts on his arms, the pain invading his chest, even Haruka faded into nothing as Kantarou breathed in and out and focused one (hopefully) last time on the power present inside of him. The familiar golden glow of his power shimmered around his form and began to concentrate around his hands, wrapping around the fingers like golden ribbons.

Haruka figured out what Kantarou was up to as soon as the man's hands were free, and he felt a swell of relief. Binding the monster trapping them would get them both of this mess, and then he could fly them home. It seemed like the exorcist was holding up fine, even with the scar on his chest acting up for this long. He wondered if that meant the original cause of Kantarou's collapse was no longer present, if the exorcist was still conscious and able to cast spells. Given his reaction before, it seemed like the presence responsible had moved away. Haruka growled, frustrated. The situation didn't make any sense to him, beyond being a trap. Why would something that could completely and so easily render a powerful tengu and exorcist helpless not finish them both off? It would have been a simple thing to kill Kantarou while he was unable to move, and whatever had trapped them had showed that it could handle Haruka just as easily. The entire situation seemed more and more like someone or something was just playing with them, not just trapping them. His eyes widened suddenly as he thought about the day's events. Kantarou had been called out on more cases than normal….all of them had required him to use his powers to resolve them…and then the exorcist's resulting exhaustion…all of these were linked to what was happening now. It wasn't about capturing the tengu-whatever this twisted game was, it seemed to require that Kantarou use up all of his power, or at least exhaust himself before getting to the actual game.

"Shit!" Haruka spat as he realized that they were playing themselves deeper into the trap they had walked right into. The exorcist had his eyes closed and the aura of his spiritual power had settled around him like a golden cloud. He would cast the binding spell any minute.

"Kantarou, stop! Don't do the spell! Oi, Kantarou!" the tengu shouted, throwing his weight against the vines chaining his arms to his sides. The only result was a new tear through his already wounded jacket as he renewed his struggles to break free. "Dammit, Kantarou…"

The young exorcist didn't hear him, all of his attention turned inwards at channeling his power one last time. His breath was released outwards at once, and he opened his eyes, forming his fingers into the patterns of the nine-word binding.

"Rin, Pyo..Tou…Sha…Kai…Jin…..Retsu…Zai…Zen" he chanted, releasing his concentrated power and energy at the same time the tengu shouted again. The power surged out from his body and engulfed the vines encircling their bodies. Even in his dismay Haruka marveled at how destructive such a pure spiritual power could be-even as it hissed harmlessly past him it consumed the plant body holding him captive. The vines whipped back to life and thrashed in seeming pain as the glow ate away at them, flinging Kantarou and Haruka around before violently shuddering and then dropping them. They continued to dissolve before soundlessly exploding into a shower of lights, harmlessly dropping onto their heads like glittering powder. Kantarou wobbled where he was trying to get to his feet, and then slumped down with his back against an unbroken part of the hallway wall as the remaining strength he had completely left him.

"Ugh….let's hope that's the end of it. Ne…Haruka…I'm really sorry.." the exorcist whispered, putting his head against the wall and closing his eyes. Haruka wanted to shake him.

"What on Earth are you sorry for? I haven't been able to do anything this entire time…" he snarled, punching the wall as he stood next to the exorcist. Kantarou had used up his power again, and he couldn't even prevent that much. The exorcist breathed in raggedly, and opened his eyes a little.

"Mm? I should have told you….that I was at my limit…then we wouldn't be in this mess…in the first place. I just hope that was it. Haruka….I don't think I can do anything else. I can't even open my eyes all of the way right now" he sighed. His eyes fluttered closed again and he leaned more heavily against the wall, one hand resting on his chest. The robes he was wearing were shredded and stained with blood where the thorns had found his skin. Haruka started as he noticed that there was a black glow faintly emanating from under Kantarou's fingers, pulsing in time with the exorcist's rapid heartbeat. It was barely noticeable, but it was there. Whether it was related to his overuse of spiritual power or because of the unknown presence taunting them in this place, Haruka only wished he knew. He had never felt this helpless before-and he was supposed to be the one this idiotic exorcist believed would make him stronger. The best he could do for the minute was to take off what remained of his jacket and tear it into strips for use on Kantarou's injuries. His own cuts were already half-healed.

"Hey Kantarou…try to stay awake a little longer. We are not out of danger yet. Just stay with me for now." Haruka carefully shook the exorcist a little. The silver-haired man murmured something unintelligible but opened his eyes again and looked up the tengu. First things first, thought Haruka. He tugged on Kantarou's robes, indicating he wanted them off so he could examine the exorcist's injuries. Kantarou managed to shrug his arms out of the heavy cloth after several minutes of weak struggling so that his upper body was left bare for inspection. Haruka growled under his breath at the sight of the deep cuts decorating the exorcist's arms and sides. The exorcist had lost a fair amount of blood just from fighting against the idiot vines-the energy drain on the man definitely wasn't going to be helped by adding blood loss. With a sigh, the tengu grabbed the torn strips from his jacket and wrapped the worst of the cuts, flinching himself whenever he tightened the dressing as Kantarou hissed his breath out a little in reaction.

"It's fine…but we should probably see if we can get out of here now," Kantarou sighed, with his eyes closing again. "I'm not going to be much use for a while, and it won't improve the longer we stay here." He sagged and his hand drifted unconsciously back up to his chest, where the scar was still emitting a faint black glow. The exorcist didn't seem to notice, so Haruka decided to look into it after they worked on getting out of the damn place. He looked down at Kantarou, who had shrugged his robes back up but didn't look like he would be walking on his own anytime soon. He sighed again and knelt in front of the exorcist, putting his hand on the man's dusty silver hair.

"Kantarou, I'm going to pick you up again. Let me know if anything hurts." He couldn't resist stroking the soft hair a little, and he let his hand move down and brush against the other man's cheek before moving to pick him up.

Kantarou was trying to resist the siren song of complete unconsciousness at this point, and he couldn't keep his eyes open. But he still felt the rough caress on his head and it made him smile a little involuntarily. _Careful Haruka…I'll start thinking you actually like me. I'm not used to being treated nicely. _He couldn't completely hold back a groan when Haruka picked him up again, feeling every cut and ache acutely. The constant throb of his scar combined with the overuse of his powers wasn't helping the way he felt at all. At least they were together and alive for now-and it seemed like they were going to get away tonight at least. _Shit….there is definitely a natural law out there that loves proving optimistic statements wrong._ He decided to make himself stay conscious a bit longer. There was no way he would let Haruka be put in danger just because he was weak right now.

Haruka felt Kantarou's breath lightly against his neck, and he couldn't help snorting when he heard the exorcist mumbling under his breath something about protecting him. Kantarou was such a strange man-not even completely conscious and still nattering on about protecting _him_, the ogre-eating goblin, of all creatures. It was laughable, but somehow he felt that if anyone could keep words like these, it was Kantarou. He hated the pained sound of Kantarou's breathing as they moved but he enjoyed the feeling of his master's body against his own. It was soothing when his emotions were under control. He didn't want to lose control of them again-and this situation had shown itself to be problematic in that regard. Kantarou shivered a little while he held onto Haruka's shirt, although his eyes stayed closed. The tengu knew he was probably conserving his energy while he sensed for any more hostile presences. Noting that the exorcist's body temperature was dropping, probably from the overuse of his powers, he extended his wings and cupped them around his body while he walked further down the spiraling passageway.


	5. Chapter 5

_Ah Ibaragi…they seem to have finally figured out they are players in our little game. Make sure they play by the rules now…_Ibaragi laughed as the slyly mocking voice reached her mind. The encounter with her vines had gone quite well-she had actually expected more of a fight. The exorcist was more of a threat than the tengu in this particular game, and he didn't look like much of one right now as he was carried cuddled in the other's arms. She wondered what the tengu would think about his master after finding out about his past. It only seemed fair that she let Ichinomiya relive his own past, since his precious Haruka had already remembered his own past. Relationships were best kept on an equal footing after all. Ah, so much fun. She smiled, revealing the tips of her fangs, and stroked the stone pillar affectionately. It was time to invite her guests inside properly. A guttural series of syllables began a chant that resonated in the sealed chamber. A spinning pool of dark energies formed against one wall, then coalesced and formed an opening that revealed the curving walls of the passageway her visitors were on. The opening wasn't completely stable, sending tendrils of black energy out into the passageway. They twined around hungrily, sensing an approaching source of spiritual power.

Ibaragi smiled again and settled herself to wait. The room would pull the exorcist and tengu in on its own, courtesy of her own dark energy. The exorcist Ichinimiya's spiritual power would be like a rare treat for her own energy to taste. Only her master would have thought of making use of the man in this way-tormenting him would release his own memories and release the rest of his latent spiritual power, which would be used to break the seal on the demon within the rock. It would be a pleasant side effect if losing his master or knowing the truth about him caused the ogre-eating goblin to revert back to his proper instincts. She smirked and watched in her mirror as the pair came closer to the main event.

"Aah.." Kantarou cried out suddenly as the surge of dark energy pulsed nearby. His scar had responded strongly, and felt like a burning second heartbeat in his chest. He took a shaky breath and released his fingers where they had tightened into Haruka's shirt. The other man looked down at him, concerned again.

"H..Haruka. The presence I felt earlier…when we first entered this hallway…it's the same one that I felt just now. " He looked up into his tengu's face. "….It looks like we will get a showdown at least…but sorry, I don't think we will be leaving anytime soon." He was silently cursing yet again falling into what should have been an obvious trap. With his powers and his body like this, he was seriously worried about how he could get them out of this. It might be better to send Haruka away-the tengu couldn't refuse a direct order from his master. Kantarou's heart pounded painfully at the thought, but he decided it would keep at least one of them safe. Better Haruka's life than his own, anyway, he thought.

"Haruka…." He tried to keep his voice from trembling.

"What is wrong now? Is the presence closer?" Haruka demanded. He nearly tripped and fell when Kantarou suddenly tried to push away and stand. He released the exorcist, catching one arm when the silver-haired man would have fallen on his face. Kantarou's body shivered again, but he forced himself to his knees so he could at least look up at the tengu.

"Haruka…I'm going to slow you down trying to get out of here. I want…" Haruka's eyes widened in shock. He suddenly knew what his idiot master was trying to do. With fluid speed, he backed the exorcist against the passageway wall and clamped one hand over his mouth, preventing him from finishing the sentence.

"What, exactly, do you think sending me away will accomplish?" he hissed furiously. "I am already fighting to control my emotions around you. If you are not around, what do you think will happen to me? Whether you like it or not, we are bound to each other. I can hate or love you, but I need you either way. So don't even think about ordering me away." He glared, and then slowly removed his hand. Kantarou just stared up at him, eyes very wide in his pale face.

"You…need me?" he whispered. The tengu just glared at him with his bottomless black eyes. His master couldn't expect him to repeat embarrassing things like that unless he was ordered to. It was enough that the man seemed to take his words seriously enough that he made no move to force Haruka to leave. Kantarou put one hand over his eyes and laughed once, before wiping it across his face and looking back at Haruka.

"I just want to protect you, Haruka….and I need you too. Please..if anything else does go wrong...take care of yourself first. Remember, we can't fly out of here if anything happens to you-and I weigh a lot less. I need you to carry me later." He smirked, a ghost of his normal expression, but still there. "Let's walk together for a little ways…you can pick me up again later. I need to keep moving or I won't wake up again for a while." Haruka sighed deeply but took Kantarou's arm and tugged him to his feet. The young exorcist staggered but the other man pulled him close to his side so he had a little bit of support. It helped, and Kantarou was motivated by the knowledge that they had to keep going. If he stopped now he wouldn't be able to start moving again, and something big was definitely coming. They moved slowly together down the sloping passage, and Haruka noticed a faint cold breeze as they shifted downwards. The flagstones were growing slick with moisture, and the walls here were speckled with mats of lichen. They must be close to an exit-it seemed likely that this passageway ended in a cave system below the manor house, but at least it could be a way out. He picked up his pace and slung one of Kantarou's arms over his shoulders to move them both along a little faster. A faint hissing and crackling slowly came to his ears as they moved close to a sharp bend and dip in the corridor. Kantarou suddenly came to a stop and tried to warn Haruka as he moved towards the turn, but it was too late. As he tried to shout Haruka's name, a lightning bolt of dark energy snaked around the bend and reached for them. The tengu shoved him out of the way and flung himself against the wall, preparing to attack. Kantarou hit the ground hard and rolled towards the other wall, unable to get to his feet quickly. The tendril of energy flickered and hissed, weaving in different directions, before suddenly striking with inhuman speed at the exorcist. Haruka shouted something unintelligible over the crackle and roar of the bolt. Kantarou didn't have a chance to hear it as he barely managed to defend against the first strike with an ofuda. The paper cast a small barrier that briefly glowed as it surrounded the exorcist, and then it sizzled and caught fire.

"Shit!" cried Kantarou as he shook his singed fingers. The dark energy remained undissipated, flickering and striking out like fingers made of black lightning. They drew upwards for a moment, and then struck again, at Haruka.

"No!" the exorcist shouted this time, and flung an ofuda at Haruka. The small barrier glowed back into life around the tengu, just as several lines of energy snaked around the passageway and made for Kantarou all at once. _Ah, so this is the trap. At least it's not after Haruka…_he had time to think before they struck his body. He screamed in shock as his own spiritual power suddenly surged up without his willing it to do so, and mingled with the dark energy coiling around him. It felt like he was bleeding from a deep wound, as his own power flowed out of him without any control. The black energy tendrils seemed to eat his own spiritual energy, leaving him feeling cold and drained with every passing second. After working past his body's instinctive defense, the evil energy wound itself around him like a web, and he felt his control slipping away completely as a dark aura surrounded him. His scar seared him as the dark power quickly rendered him helpless, and the last thing he felt was a sudden spike in the dark energy as his scar reacted violently.

"Haruka…" he prayed that his barrier had at least protected Haruka before he slipped over again into unconsciousness. He managed to complete the thought that he was spending more time than he cared to unconscious before he fell again into the dark.

"Kantarou! Goddamit, wake up you idiot master! Kantarou!" Haruka howled as the barrier his master had thrown up around him held, trapping him inside of it while the energy bounced harmlessly off of it. He was helpless when he saw the additional lines of darkness streak towards and strike Kantarou. "Dammit!" he dropped to his knees and pounded one of his fists through a flagstone in fury. He didn't want to watch this. The young exorcist screamed and his power reacted to something in the dark energy, draining him further. Kantarou didn't even notice that when his scar reacted again, the dark glow that had been present a little earlier had strengthened with the contact of the evil force. His spiritual power flickered brightly and then went out, leaving him wrapped in the web of dark energies. Kantarou's body was held upright by it, although Haruka could see that the other man had lost consciousness again. Unfortunately, the idiot's ofuda barrier was more effective at protecting Haruka than it had been at protecting its owner-he was still trapped. He threw himself against it, tearing at it with his claws although he knew it was useless.

"Kantarou! You asshole! At least take off your barrier….damn you! Wake up!" he felt his emotions starting to tangle out of control again. This time he couldn't hold on, and he felt his claws and fangs extend, while his pupils contracted to reveal irises tinted red with his anger. He wanted to rip apart this barrier, these things that were attacking them…he wanted to destroy everything. He saw an image of Kantarou mixed in with his thoughts of destruction, the man covered in red. He wanted…what did he want with Kantarou again? There was blood and hate, but another type of desire rose inside of him that had nothing to do with death. As his feelings boiled within him, his own demonic aura grew and his natural ability to call lightning strengthened (even as his control fled) and a bolt flashed down and destroyed Kantarou's barrier with one strike. He snarled and clutched at the solid stone wall of the passage briefly, scraping his claws into the rock,trying to bring his emotions under control. There was no way to save Kantarou when he was like this-he was as likely to kill or do even worse things to his master than save him right now. He threw back his head and screamed in frustration as his master was held helpless only a few feet away.


	6. Chapter 6

_It's time to bring them in, my pets_, Ibaragi called. The exorcist was nearly at the breaking point, and the tengu was fighting against his own emotions and memories. The timing was perfect, just as her master had planned on. She sighed with pleasure and then chanted again, the harsh syllables rolling off her tongue and echoing darkly through the small chamber. The feelers of dark energy she had sent out reeled their way back in, carrying her prize. The tengu would follow as well, she had no doubt.

Kantarou's limp form slowly lifted off the ground, suspended motionless just above the flagstones by the network of dark lines twisted around him. He hung for a moment, and then the darkness seemed to condense and contract, the lines growing fatter, before pulling the exorcist away from Haruka and towards the curve of the passage. Haruka sank to the ground, struggling to calm himself. He closed his eyes and breathed, and again thoughts of Kantarou came to the front of his mind. Kantarou smiling, Kantarou whining, and Kantarou's serious face floated in front of him, and he slowly managed to push away the red haze that painted his master's face with blood in his memories and emotions. This was his master and friend-who had still tried to protect _him _even though he was the one in danger right now. Haruka shook himself violently and surged to his feet, and broke into a run as he saw the exorcist's body disappearing around the turn. Around the turn, the hissing tendrils of black were connected to an opening in the wall that revealed only another sealed stone room through its portal. Kantarou was pulled in and the opening began to iris closed, hissing and spitting sparks like a furious dragon. Haruka didn't even think before flinging himself after the exorcist, the opening snapping shut just behind his heels. He leaped to his feet almost instantly, on alert, and held a fighting stance. Kantarou remained held upright in the air next to him for a moment, and then the black energy holding him dissolved suddenly and let him fall to the ground. Haruka was instantly at his side, mantling his wings protectively over them while he examined the prone form of the exorcist. He felt disquiet when he noticed the other man's scar had changed to a deep black that seemed to radiate an unpleasant energy of its own. He didn't know how Kantarou had handled it for this long. A clear, high-pitched laugh rang through the small room, and he whirled to see what enemy was waiting for them this time. Shock ran through him as he spotted and then recognized the woman standing next to a massive stone pillar, the only other feature in the blank stone cell they were in.

"You…? " he snarled. "I thought you wanted me, didn't you? Why go to all the trouble of making Kantarou come along? You could have tricked me into this without him!" his hands clenched into fists so tight, his claws bit into the palms. Ibaragi only smiled at him.

"Ah, but we made new plans. Your little master fits so well into them, we decided it was a shame to let him go to waste. Actually, ogre-eater, you are only here to watch. The one we want to play with today….is Mr. Ichinomiya here." She pouted a little as she looked at the unmoving exorcist. "Although he doesn't seem very lively right now, does he? I need to wake him up so we can play properly," she said, delicate points of fangs showing as she grinned at Haruka. He felt his heart drop like a stone in his chest. What could they possibly want with Kantarou? As if reading his thoughts, she laughed again.

"Haven't you always been curious about your dear master's past? I'm sure he doesn't talk about it much, does he?" Haruka growled deep in his throat. It was true that Kantarou never talked about his past, but the tengu was perceptive enough to know that there was something there that strongly affected the exorcist. He had his own problems with his memories, so he understood perfectly well that others might not want to reveal their own messy pasts. He felt a thread of uneasiness move up his spine as he waited to see what she would do. Kantarou was still protected underneath Haruka's wings, so just for the moment he seemed safe enough. Ibaragi seemed to read his thoughts again.

"Ah, but his past is important to us, because it is the reason he is who he is. His past is the reason he has so much spiritual power…and his body has secrets even he doesn't know." She leaned back and patted the stone pillar meaningfully, and for the first time Haruka noticed the seals wrapped around the stone. The graceful hand the seals were written in looked very familiar to him, and with a cold shock he realized it belonged to Kantarou. His own master had sealed something very old and powerful in this pillar. Somehow it was related to why they were here right now, and he had a sinking feeling that they would find out before the night was over. Ibaragi showed her teeth at him and nodded, pressing her cheek against the aged stone briefly.

"Whether you want to or not, you are going to witness Kantarou Ichinomiya's past. His spiritual powers are strong enough to catch you up in his memories, even if he doesn't wish to. I'm sure he will be thrilled about going down his memory lane with you. This fellow here," she said, stroking the pillar, "is the surprise ending. Be a good boy and just enjoy the show, why don't you?" she smirked and suddenly flicked her fingers towards Haruka, uttering a few more syllables in the same harsh tongue she had used earlier.

A net of the same black energy flew from her fingertips and struck Haruka directly in the chest as he hovered over Kantarou. It sent the tengu flying backwards and into the rear wall of the rough stone cell, where he stuck, trapped by the strength of the lines. He tried to break free, but without his full powers, he wasn't a match for this energy right now. He didn't want to risk harming or killing Kantarou as well unless there was no other choice. Gritting his teeth, he worked on silently resisting the bonds that held him against the wall. It took all of his willpower to keep his emotions in check as he watched Ibaragi saunter across the room towards the exorcist. Kantarou looked terribly small and helpless lying sprawled across the floor. _Keep yourself under control….she said herself they won't kill him right away…hang in there for Kantarou's sake…_he told himself repeatedly. He still couldn't tear his eyes away from the scene in front of him. Ibaragi looked up at him and smirked again, and then knelt next to Kantarou and then held his head and shoulders up in her arms. The exorcist seemed to sense her presence, and he moaned and tried to instinctively move away from the source of discomfort.

"Ah, none of that, Mr. Ichinomiya. I'd wish you pleasant dreams, but these will be anything but. Still, it is good to know the past. Remember-the truth can set you free." She glanced up at Haruka to see if he was watching.

"I'll tell you this much, ogre-eater. Your master used to be valuable property-his own family used him for his spiritual powers. They used him quite often as a channeler and medium….much like that pretty child we have used before for our own purposes. My own master has decided it would be more useful to have a more…durable….specimen for our needs in that respect. Hence, luring you down here." She looked down at the exorcist and stroked his silver hair, chuckling darkly when he flinched away again. "His powers are also more than strong enough to let us share his past with him. I'm sure he appreciates that though-I'm sure someone as close to him as you can tell he seems quite alone. Ah, but seeing is better than talking, and we have our reasons for doing things this way." She looked at Kantarou almost tenderly for a moment, smoothing his damp hair again. "Although I'll admit most of my own reasons for doing this to you right now are for the pleasure I get in seeing you both squirming in pain." Ibaragi gripped the exorcist in her arms, pinning him against her chest, and then suddenly bit her own tongue, and let thick blood fill her mouth. Kantarou made a small sound of protest that made Haruka's heart beat painfully. He redoubled his efforts as he snarled viciously and fought furiously against the bonds of energy, to little effect. Ibaragi appreciated the effort. It was a shame that the exorcist couldn't see how much his servant cared for him. Making sure the tengu was still watching, she bent her head down and pressed her cold lips against the young man's own lips, hard. She forced Kantarou's mouth open and transferred her own blood past his lips with her tongue. He instinctively swallowed even as his body trembled in reaction to her proximity. Even she wondered what the reaction would be, when the man was already sensitive to just the presence of ogres and demons. What would consuming one's blood do to him, exactly? She knew her powers would amplify what already existed within him, and that her blood would also force him to relive his memories while pulling out those desirable spiritual powers. Ibaragi shivered with anticipation. She knew it wouldn't be pleasant for the exorcist. She hoped he had a dark and twisted past-it would be that much more entertaining for her.

Haruka threw himself one last time against the bonds, shouting Kantarou's name as he did so. He was experiencing a novel emotion-fear. The tengu never felt fear for himself when he fought against superior opponents, but this fear was directed towards his master. He didn't know what Ibaragi was up to, but he knew that it was bad for Kantarou.

"Let me go already, you bitch!" he howled, managing to extract one arm from the energy binding. "You've done what you want to him, haven't you? I won't fight you while you have him at your mercy….for now."

She smirked as she carelessly dropped the exorcist back to the stone floor, ignoring the motionless man as she turned her attention to Haruka. The reaction she was getting from him was already most satisfactory, and she decided letting him down would just reinforce his helplessness in this situation. They could probably pressure him to break if they continued this experiment. She snapped her fingers and whispered a few more guttural syllables and again the dark energy responded to her, flowing back into her open palm from the binding web until it completed its merge back with her body. A crackling afterimage was left behind, and then Haruka fell to the floor, not expecting the sudden release of his bonds. He sat with his wings sprawled around him, stunned for a few seconds.

"Enjoy the ride, both of you. I'll be back to check on things in a little while….I have to check in with my own master. Look forward to seeing me again soon, ogre-eater. Take good care of Mr. Ichinomiya for me….it would be shame to have him die at this point." She waggled one hand at him while she walked towards the stone pillar. Once she reached the pillar, she closed her eyes and placed a hand on the cold age-smoothed surface, and then slowly faded from view. A black mist hovered where she had been for a second, and then dissipated.

Haruka shook his head, realizing he was free now. He shot to his feet and ran to where Kantarou was lying, still apparently unconscious on the cold floor. His fear grew stronger as he carefully turned the exorcist onto his back and pulled him into his arms. There was no way out of the room that he could determine. They would likely need Ibaragi's presence to open the way out again, unless he could muster his full powers. Kantarou would have to be out of danger before he could try anything like that-he still didn't know what was happening to the other man. _Gahh….isn't Kantarou supposed to be the useless one out of the two of us_? Haruka groaned and hauled his burden over to the wall farthest away from the stone pillar. He sat down on the ground and pulled the exorcist into his lap, hoping to at least keep him warm. The other man's body was noticeably cold to his sensitive skin, and he worried about what Ibaragi's blood would do to him. This was the best he could do for Kantarou right now.

A soft sound from the exorcist caught his attention, and he noticed with growing alarm that the other man's face had twisted with pain. It looked as though he was suffering, but whether it was physical pain or mental, the tengu didn't know.

"Shh…Kantarou. You're fine, I'm here. I'll help you." Haruka tried to sound comforting, although he was well aware it wasn't a tone he was good at expressing. He just didn't want Kantarou to suffer alone. He didn't know what Ibaragi had meant about experiencing his past, but he was determined that he at least try to be there with Kantarou. Beads of sweat had formed on the exorcist's forehead even though his skin was cold, and he was starting to squirm even in his unconscious sleep. His breathing accelerated and he took one or two gasping little breaths as his hands reflexively clenched at Haruka's battered sleeves. The silver-haired man suddenly shuddered violently and then arched his back out of Haruka's arms, a scream escaping his lips. _Shit shit shit! Damn that Ibaragi for doing this to him!_ The tengu growled and kept his grip on Kantarou, hoping to at least keep him from hurting himself further. He didn't think Ibaragi had poisoned the exorcist, but this was bad enough. He didn't know how long he could keep his emotions under control if this situation kept deteriorating. He also didn't know how long Kantarou's body could handle whatever it was they were doing to him. Haruka was fairly certain this was the most time the exorcist had ever spent going in and out of consciousness like this (the man's normal laziness didn't count in his estimate)-he fervently hoped so anyway. This couldn't be good for his master, that was certain. Kantarou cried out again in agony, and as he did so Haruka suddenly felt a strange pressure surrounding them. He looked around wildly for the source, expecting yet another attack. The pressure increased and he realized it felt strangely familiar….almost like Kantarou's normal spiritual presence. It always surrounded their house like a soothing blanket, and Haruka was used to the feeling of his power. He suspected it was his own presence that alerted Kantarou to his own location in a similar way. He glanced down to see if the exorcist had sensed it, and noticed with shock that the silver-haired man was faintly glowing. _I thought he had used up his reserve or however his spiritual powers work…so then what is this? Is this from what Ibaragi did to him? Shit, I really wish I knew what was happening. _Haruka noticed that the glow was centered around his scar-it was as if his spiritual energy was flowing out of him through that single point. It reminded him unpleasantly of blood flowing from a deep wound, and he hoped it would stop soon. Kantarou's face was still tense with pain, but as the flow of spiritual energy continued the exorcist's body slowly sank back down and relaxed in his arms again. His breathing slowed down, and the tengu could feel the man's heartbeat slowing against his chest. Haruka's own heart hammered faster in worry. Was Kantarou weakening now? He ran his hands over the exorcist's arms, chafing them to keep him warm, and then he put his own head on top of Kantarou's. At least his master didn't know what he was doing right now, so he didn't have to worry about being teased or taken advantage of right now. Haruka buried his face in the silver hair and wished for Ibaragi to come back quickly so he could at least try to kill something soon. Anything to feel less helpless.


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry for not making comments on the other chapters-I'm new to this! If anyone thinks I am tormenting poor Kantarou too much, don't worry-I make it up to him and Haruka later on. **

**I don't own Tactics or the characters-but I am enjoying using them for my own creative license. If you like, review! They increase my writing hp.**

**Kantarou's POV**

Kantarou dimly knew that he was floating in a dark sea of pain, but every time he tried to surface he kept sinking deeper into unconsciousness. He briefly heard Haruka's voice through the dark, and then an evil presence nearby made him moan as his scar reacted to it. His body seemed very far away, but he could feel his face and lips being caressed by cold hands as if from a great distance. It seemed so far removed from where his mind was that he couldn't force his body to move. A new sensation suddenly entered the darkness where he was, as he felt something pressed through his lips and his body instinctively swallowed. He could feel it start boiling in his blood, and a sudden agony beyond what he had ever experienced bloomed in his chest and spread through his veins. His muscles tensed and his back arched as he spasmed violently against this new pain. He screamed but his breath seemed to be boiling away along with what felt like everything else. The agony in his chest was so incredibly hot and he wondered in a small part of his mind why he wasn't dead from it yet. It felt like he should have burned up by now. The pain spread until every vein in his body seemed to be filled with flames, and then he felt a darker spike throb through his chest like a second heartbeat. Where was Haruka now? He felt completely isolated, and it terrified him more than the pain did. He couldn't hear or sense anything else except the burning inside of him. Another throb in his chest made him cry out once more, and then he felt something break open. His own spiritual powers surged up again from deep inside of him, a reserve he didn't know he even had, drawn out somehow by the strange burning in his blood-and then it spilled outwards. He couldn't control it or direct it-it flowed out as if a dam had broken. As it poured out of him, Kantarou felt his mind suddenly pulled upwards and away along with his power. He was ripped violently back towards consciousness, and then the darkness he was in exploded suddenly into dazzling gold light. He wondered briefly if this meant he had died-if so, it wasn't nearly as bad as he had expected given what he had gone through to get here. But…he could still sense his body, his heart beating…and he realized with faint annoyance that he could definitely still feel pain. So he wasn't dead yet, at least.

Kantarou noticed suddenly that the pain he was in was starting to decrease as his power continued to flow out of him, and he felt his body slowly begin to relax as muscles tensed with cold and pain finally released their tension. He realized again with a shock that he could now feel the light against his eyelids as he rose completely out of the dark he had been floating in, and he struggled to wake up completely. He found himself finally able to open his eyes, and as the light made them burn and tear up, he squinted, expecting to see the familiar stone walls around him. He prayed that Haruka was safe-he still couldn't sense his tengu's presence. The exorcist didn't realize that he was still being held carefully by Haruka's lean arms.

The tengu himself was still wondering what had happened to Kantarou. Haruka could see and feel Kantarou's power still flowing from him, surrounding both of them. He noticed with unease that the sealed stone pillar looming next to them in the cell seemed to be pulling his power into itself as well, and seemed to be taking on an ominous black glow, still barely perceptible. It reminded him of something, and he frowned as he concentrated. His eyebrows shot up as he remembered what it was-the black glow looked exactly the same as the dark glow he had been seeing on Kantarou's scar. Haruka glanced down at the exorcist's chest, confirming what he had noticed. Although the power surrounding them was Kantarou's, whatever was pulling it out of him was definitely not. Part of Ibaragi and Raikou's plan made sense now-it was obvious to him (and probably to Kantarou, although he couldn't say anything to confirm it right now) that they had found a way to use the exorcist's power to unseal whatever was confined in the pillar. He still didn't understand why Kantarou's past mattered in what was going on-forcing the man to relive painful memories might have just been Ibaragi toying with them. It definitely suited what he knew of her, anyway. He settled himself a little more comfortably to keep an eye on the sealed pillar and still hold the exorcist. The flow of Kantarou's spiritual power didn't show any signs of stopping, and he tried to think of any youkai methods for sealing or stopping something like this. If this kept on, the silver-haired man really would be drained dry.

A growing feeling of dizziness slowly began to wash over him as he sat pressed against the damp stone wall, and he wondered if his own mind was being affected by Kantarou's proximity. Haruka knew that the other man could sense when the tengu was nearby, and he also knew that some people with strong spiritual powers could easily put others into trances or pull them into dreams. It was logical to think that if someone with powers like the exorcist lost control of his powers, he could easily influence others without conscious thought. Maybe Ibaragi expected Kantarou to pull Haruka's mind into his memories with him? It would be a good way to incapacitate both of them, with the exorcist locked in his own mind and the tengu dragged along for the ride. He growled deep in his throat, irritated at how they had walked into all of this. Shouldn't Kantarou have better intuition? Haruka resisted the now-familiar urge to shake the silver-haired man and instead adjusted him to rest more comfortably against his chest instead. And although he didn't want to admit it to himself, he was curious about Kantarou's past. Just a little. He hoped he would be more help in the man's memories than he had been so far this evening…it was a dismal performance by his standards. The truly aggravating part of the entire mess this had turned into was that he knew Kantarou wouldn't blame him for any of it. He would just smile his enigmatic, impossible to interpret smile, and pat Haruka's shoulder and shrug it off. He sometimes wondered if he would be more useful to Kantarou if he only knew a little bit more about the man. Still….he tried to shake his head to clear it. This wasn't the way he wanted to learn more about the exorcist that called himself his friend. He shook his head hard enough to let his long black hair fall across his eyes, and tried to keep his eyes focused between keeping an eye on the stone pillar and on Kantarou's condition. The pillar was glowing an ominous black now, the color slowly deepening like a bruise. Kantarou at least seemed to be only sleeping now, his face and body relaxed in Haruka's arms-but he was getting colder to the tengu's hot skin as his spiritual energy continued to flow out through the now black scar on his chest. The feeling of light-headed dizziness continued to creep over Haruka, slowly enough that the tengu didn't even notice when it became an inexorable and irresistible urge to close his eyes and just let go of his thoughts. Haruka struggled to keep his eyes open and his mind clear, but Kantarou's spiritual energy eventually overpowered him and he gradually faded out of consciousness. It felt like he was falling into a dark abyss (had it felt like this for Kantarou, he wondered), but as he fell deeper, instead of grower darker he seemed to see a growing brightness against his eyelids. Just when the light grew overpowering, his eyes suddenly opened. _What the hell? _The stone cell he knew they were both trapped in was no longer around him.

Meanwhile, Kantarou struggled to see as his eyes adjusted to the light dazzling them. He had expected to see the walls of stone surrounding them, and hoped that Haruka was nearby. But he noticed with a shock that he didn't see stone or even walls around him once his eyes cleared. Instead, he found himself looking out at a very familiar landscape-as it had looked many years ago. Before he had received the scar on his chest. He was looking out over a small cliff at the village he had been born and raised in-he knew that if he turned around, he would see a vast forest of dark pines and a white trail leading to a small temple deep within the woods. He had been here many times before when he was young-it didn't hold many good memories for him. Kantarou tried to look around at his surroundings to orient himself and make sure of where he was, but found another unpleasant shock when he realized he couldn't move his eyes. It was as if he was looking out of another person's eyes…but he had a feeling that it wasn't just a stranger's eyes. _Well…this just gets deeper and deeper. I thought I was finally awake too..._the exorcist sighed inwardly as he realized he was still trapped and still at the mercy of whatever elaborate plan was going on. It seemed like whatever had forced his powers to respond had also forced his unconscious mind to respond as well-he thought that this might be one of his own past memories that he was trapped in. As the owner of the eyes he was looking out of looked downwards, he felt dread chill his mind-it was without a doubt, himself that he was looking at. Small pools of water were scattered across the top of the cliff edge from recent rains, and as the eyes he peered out of looked down, he caught a glimpse of a young man's reflection…one of himself. His bright crimson eyes and silver hair were impossible to mistake, although this was a much younger Kantarou. He managed to feel a little disgruntled that his appearance hadn't matured all that much in the years since he had been to this place.

Still…he felt a thread of uneasiness as he took the chance to study his reflection. This younger version of himself bothered him, but he couldn't figure out why. As the younger Kantarou leaned down to look closer at the pool of water, he figured out what it was. This memory was of him before he had gotten his scar-as the younger form of the exorcist leaned over his plain grey robes slipped open slightly, revealing a smooth, unmarked chest. Kantarou felt a shock run through him as he realized he didn't recognize this memory. He knew that he must have been injured close to the time of this memory-he could remember that he had been about this age and still living on the outskirts of the village down below when it had happened. He thought hard for a minute, trying to place this memory. A cold chill hit him as he tried to remember what exactly had led up to his receiving the scar. It was strange….he remembered vividly how long his recovery from it had been, and he wasn't that surprised he didn't have clear memories of the actual event. But his memories of what led up to the injury just...weren't there. _What the….why don't I remember what happened? _


	8. Chapter 8

Haruka found himself looking out at the edge of a cliff, overlooking a small village nestled below. Behind him rose a dark curtain of ancient pines, shrouding a small path with deep green shadows. He stared for a minute, while his brain tried to place what had happened.

_I was…affected by Kantarou's power after all, it seems. Ibaragi said he would relive his memories…does this mean I've been dragged into one as he experiences it? _He tried to look around at his surroundings, only to realize he had no control over the body he was peering out of. Well, this at least confirmed that he was somehow trapped in someone else's body. As the owner of the body turned and bent down to look in a small pool of water, he felt an electric shock as he saw the person's face. It was Kantarou's own eyes he was seeing out of-the pale skin and silver hair, and the familiar dark red eyes gleamed at him before a breeze shivered the surface of the water. But this was a much younger version of his master-although his face didn't change much, he still looked very young here. He was a poor judge with human ages, but he guessed this boy was in his early teens. With his keen eyesight he quickly noticed that this version of Kantarou was not wearing his standard red and white hakama-the dull robe he was wearing looked faded and well-used. More importantly, he noticed that this younger man did not have the scar he was familiar with crossing his chest.

_So this is what she meant by reliving his past…I get the feeling I won't like this either. _He would have tugged at his hair in frustration if he had control of this body-it seemed like he really was along just for the ride. If he couldn't even move any limbs or even his eyes, how could he do anything for Kantarou? They were both going to have to sit through a re-enactment of the past where they could only watch what happened. Haruka knew that Kantarou was probably reliving this particular memory right now along with him, since this was where he had ended up. He sighed inwardly and resigned himself to being a silent observer. At least he would finally know what had happened to the exorcist, and he wondered if he might discover a way to free them both from Ibaragi and Raikou's trap from reliving this event. It must have been an important memory, particularly if these past events were related to what was happening to Kantarou's power and what they planned on doing with it. And still….even if his master didn't know he was there, he could at least be there with him. The least he could do was watch what happened without shying away from it.

"Kantarou! Oi, freaky little brat, you were supposed to be helping down at the family temple today!" A harsh voice broke the quiet on top of the cliff, and both Haruka and Kantarou felt the younger boy's body flinch and look around quickly, seeking a place to hide. He looked around, and finding nothing close enough, shook himself and straightened his shoulders, turning back towards the woods to face the owner of the voice. It was eerie for both Haruka and Kantarou, seeing from his eyes, as they could sense and feel what the younger boy was experiencing. Right now he was obviously terrified by the arrival of the unfriendly voice. Heavy footsteps crunched up the path towards him (them, now!), and they had a glimpse of a large heavyset man in traditional exorcist robes. They were in much better condition than the young Kantarou's, and his face was red from fury and exertion as he huffed up the path towards the cliff edge.

"You had better come with me now, boy…you already know you are going to be punished for not showing up. Do you want me to add my own for having to come after you?", he snarled at the boy, grabbing one of his arms and shaking him hard as he spoke. "You should be grateful your powers are useful to the Ichinomiya family-who would have kept an oddity like you around if you weren't? Your own mother left you behind for us to use as we see fit because it was the only way she could bear the shame of producing a bastard offspring like you." He mopped his face with one of his trailing sleeves, and then turned on his heel, roughly forcing the young man to follow behind him or be dragged on his face.

"Please….don't pull so hard. I'll walk. I won't run away, I promise," he mumbled as he was jerked back towards the pathway heading into the melancholy green of old pines. _It won't do me any good until I learn more….if I can't control my spiritual powers I won't be able to get away for good. _The two observers watched through his eyes, each thinking of what the older man had said. Kantarou was remembering how much he had wanted to get away from his life in the Ichinomiya family household. Haruka was thinking he wanted to beat the old bastard dragging the kid to within an inch of his life, and that he could understand why Kantarou had such a warped personality sometimes if his family life had been as bad as it looked from this. It surprised him though-he had always assumed someone with powers as strong and controlled as his master's had come from a family of exorcists or onmoyouji. He just hadn't expected him to have been mistreated by his own family though….what Ibaragi had said was true. They really had just used him then. _Huh…no wonder he relates better to youkai if this is what he was used to from his human family._ His view of the approaching forest blurred a little as a few tears rose up in the young man's eyes, quickly wiped away by his free hand. They walked into the vast forest, the trees pricking the sky like cathedral spires. An ominous aura seemed to swallow them up as they entered and moved towards the village, and the heavyset exorcist picked up his pace, not wanting to linger in the eerie atmosphere. The young Kantarou's eyes spotted a few shadows that moved alongside their path, and he smiled a little in acknowledgment. The youkai in the forest at least called him their friend. He would put up with his so-called responsibilities to the family a little longer if it would give him enough power to take care of himself and what he cared about someday.


	9. Chapter 9

_**Thank you guys so very much for the reviews! I know how I feel when I start reading something and want it to be updated, so I can tell you I will at least try to update this once or twice a week. It should start getting pretty interesting in the next chapter or two (and I do keep tormenting poor Kantarou-it's out of love though) regarding Kantarou's past.**_

_**Love more reviews-they give me the power to write more quickly :-D**_

_**Oh, I don't own Tactics or the characters-it's just wishful thinking.**_

Although the fat old monk was trying to set a hard pace back through the forest, he obviously wasn't in peak physical condition, so Kantarou was able to catch his breath again. Even if everyone else in the village was afraid to come in this far without a good reason, he found it soothing to his senses. Then again, part of the reason was likely that everyone else gave the ancient trees a wide berth. For someone like him, who preferred the company of spirits and youkai, it was more of a home than where he slept at night. His thin body shivered a little as the chilly evening air easily slipped through the light robe he was wearing.

Haruka and Kantarou's older self watched from the boy's eyes as their line of sight shifted to focus on a small, barely noticeable side trail hidden next to a pair of oddly shaped boulders. The older Kantarou knew that if they took that trail, they would come to an abandoned temple with a small shrine. The structures were so old that even the old hermit who had lived there hadn't remembered what they were there for, but he had been more than willing to teach a lonely child about the forest youkai. He had also sensed Kantarou's powers, and had been the first person to teach him how to control it-how to use it when he wanted to, and more importantly as he grew older and finally caught his family's attention, how to prevent it from escaping or running wild. Both of the watchers felt the boy's sadness as his eyes lingered briefly on the fading trail as they walked past it, although Haruka didn't understand what the feeling was for.

Kantarou remembered that the old man had probably already been dead for a year or two at the time shown in this memory, but when he had been this age he had missed the gruff old hermit badly. Even though his teaching had been harsh, he had been kind in his own way to the odd boy that was used to being shunned or tormented by the villagers. A sharp pain in his shoulder as the younger man's arm was roughly jerked again brought his thoughts again to why he was reliving this particular memory. He normally had an excellent memory-he would be a pretty sorry scholar without it. It made him feel that he must have had good reasons for forgetting or subconsciously smothering this seemingly small and unpleasant part of his life. _Ugh….why can't I ever relive any good memories? This is definitely going in a direction that I think I'd rather not remember. _

The light was fading into the sort of crystalline clarity of twilight that only occurs when winter is well on its way, and the younger boy's body was growing numb with cold by the time they reached the village outskirts nestled against the feet of the pine stand. He couldn't feel his feet anymore, but it was the least of his worries as he saw the lanterns blazing merrily outside of the Ichinomiya family's ancestral home. This time of the evening was often the busiest in the household for those of the family with spiritual powers-it was when most of the villagers made their requests and prayers. In this village, spells were considered to be best done at the shift between day and night. There were of course, some things that were only done in the dead of complete night, but often the villagers didn't know about the darker forms of power that were wielded by the same family they turned to for protection against evil.

A violent shudder ran through Kantarou's body suddenly, and both men watching from his eyes could see what caused his reaction. Several tall figures, clad in formal exorcist regalia down to the imposing tall caps were standing at the entrance to the temple section of the compound, obviously waiting for them. They couldn't make out faces in the fading light, but the young Kantarou obviously knew who they were in this memory. They felt him try to dig his heels into the ground instinctively, and his muscles tensed as he seemed ready to bolt away. The rough hands still holding his arm in a bruising grip tightened and then shoved him hard towards the group, making him lose his balance.

"Here-I found the little whelp in his usual hiding spot. It's not my place to decide, but it would benefit the boy to learn a little more discipline….this type only learns that from force. I'd be more than happy to help with that if this happens again." He sneered and then cuffed Kantarou's head, making him fall forward. "Behave yourself, brat. Even if you are useful, you can still be replaced. Wouldn't you like to see someone else in your place?"

The last words hit home-how could he wish the same sort of use he was put to on someone else? His feet were numb with the cold of the evening air, and he stumbled and fell heavily in front of the group, lantern light flickering across their robes and creating eerie patterns of shadow across their faces. The tallest figure stepped forward and looked down at him, the light revealing an aristocratic but cruel face. High cheekbones and a narrow nose and lips looked carved out of granite and equally cold. Haruka felt a shock as he noticed that some of those features were similar to Kantarou's own-although he felt his master's odd appearance was at least more appealing than this man's. Red eyes were much nicer to look at…like glass beads. But still…they shared the same cheekbones and sculpted features. Kantarou definitely was part of this family by blood, then. _Why then do they treat him cruelly? Is it normal for this type of family to be harsh…or is it because of his appearance?_ Haruka wondered what use his master had been to the Ichinomiya family-his treatment seemed contrary to how a valuable asset to an old family like this one would be. _Great…the mystery deepens. It looks like this is just going to give me more questions. _The tengu tried to squash the irritation creeping up within him. He hated being a spectator, even if it was interesting to know what his master had been like when he was younger.

The man stared down into Kantarou's eyes, and then he casually lifted one arm and delivered a stinging slap that almost knocked the boy back down again.

"You knew we had a vital ceremony to perform today that required your participation. Consider this as very light punishment, considering we require you in good condition to be of use to us in this." Kantarou bit his lip hard, trying not to respond and get himself in deeper trouble. He couldn't keep a question from showing on his face as he looked back up, however. The tall exorcist's lips quirked in a cruel twist as he looked down.

"We require your powers as a channeler for this. Your spiritual powers will attract the youkai that we have discovered stalking near the village-it is quite powerful. It should be quite drawn to someone with your talents, and it will be of more use to us if we can capture it when it tries to possess or consume you than simply exorcising it. You'd prefer that, wouldn't you boy? I know you don't like it when we kill your little friends." He smiled in a paternal fashion that set Kantarou and his two (unknown) riders' teeth on edge.

They sensed a white-hot flash of rage that quickly faded into terror mixed with frustration as the younger man tried to think of a way to rebel, to prevent this, knowing that he couldn't do anything except go along for now. He couldn't let the Ichinomiya family get their hands on another child with abilities like his own-channeling was most common in children and teenagers, and it was extremely rare to find adults that still had the ability. It was unusual and an indicator of how strong he could be someday that he still had powerful spirit channeling abilities along with his high spiritual energy. He was used to harsh treatment from life-but most of the village children were not. He didn't like other humans very much, but he didn't wish harm on them. Most of them, anyway-the fat monk had crossed his mind in vindictive dreams on more than one occasion.

"Well? _Kantarou_….answer me. I trust we will see you take your responsibility to this family seriously this time, hmm?" Kantarou dropped his eyes, and let his shoulders sag, the fight going out of him for the time being. Haruka felt another shock at the boy's next words. How the hell had Kantarou turned into his current overbearing and manipulative form from this seemingly sensitive and obedient child?

"Yes….I will, Uncle. Please forgive my behavior. You know I am grateful to be allowed as a member of this family in my mother's place."

His uncle allowed a small smile to grace his lips, and then put a cold hand on Kantarou's unkempt silver hair. The boy trembled a little in automatic revulsion, but forced himself to stay still. The other man let his gaze move over the younger man's frame, taking in the condition of his body and clothing.

"You will get new robes for this job at least, Kantarou. We will have two weeks until the next auspicious time for this particular ceremony, thanks to your absence tonight. Actually, I should thank you-it is a better date than today was. There will be a blood moon that night, so all of our powers should be amplified. This means there is time for you to get into better condition. You can at least look like part of the family for this one as well." His smile grew predatory, reminding Kantarou of why he didn't trust other people. There was definitely something about this ceremony that he was not going to like. He had a bad feeling. His uncle had neglected to mention that youkai powers were affected even more strongly by the moon's influences-a blood-red full moon would amplify a youkai's malignant energy much more than it would help supposedly Buddhist exorcists such as those in the Ichinominya family line.

_Well, this makes me remember that I've always sucked at listening to my intuition, then-even while young. If I was smarter I would have just run away to the forest. _Kantarou felt the younger version of himself sigh and then his body's exhaustion dragged over both Haruka and the exorcist's minds as well. He painfully hauled himself to his feet, and noticing they were scraped and bleeding in a few places from the long trek down from the forest, decided to at least bathe. Even if he felt dirty every time he came into contact with his uncle (and the other members of his so-called family), he could still at least control how physically clean he was. Even knowing he was still considered a child, he felt that he would always be stained in some way from the life he was living right now.

Both of the spectators in the memory shivered along with him as he quickly drew a cold bath to avoid any further notice, and then slipped on another ragged robe to sleep in. Haruka watched with interest as the boy slipped silently from the bathing rooms through several opulent corridors lit with expensive scented lanterns before turning into a smaller set of hallways set with sliding doors. They looked like servants' quarters, and his hunch proved right when Kantarou slid open one of the shogi doors and revealed a cramped room. A few old books were scattered across the floor, all dedicated to youkai, and a single bracelet was placed on the small wooden desk at one corner of the room, next to the painting of a woman. He couldn't see the painting well enough as the boy turned his head to look around the room. Haruka thought that the bracelet looked familiar, and deduced with a mental leap that it was the same one (or identical to) that his master wore around his wrist now. It was strange not to see it nestled against Kantarou's skin-the man he knew now never removed it, even when sleeping. His heart throbbed once when he noticed the most battered looking of the books (the most obviously used) was open to a painting of what was obviously meant to be an ogre-eating tengu. Kantarou really had wanted to meet him for most of his life-it felt strange to Haruka. He wondered if the exorcist would have ever sought him out if he hadn't had such a strange upbringing.

Both Haruka and Kantarou felt themselves falling slowly back into darkness as the younger man's eyes slid closed in exhaustion-and they all slept. Although only the older Kantarou knew what would happen to his younger self in the very near future, all three felt the same foreboding pervade their dreams and sent restless nightmares chasing them through sleep and awareness.

Kantarou himself was frightened of remembering what had happened during the blood-moon ceremony-he knew that it had something vital to do with what had happened to him and Haruka in the now. Now he had to relive it to find out what exactly had happened to him-and to his family and village.


	10. Chapter 10

**It should start getting pretty interesting in the next chapter or two (and I do keep tormenting poor Kantarou-it's out of love though) regarding Kantarou's past.**

**Love more reviews-they give me the power to write more quickly :-D**

**Oh, I don't own Tactics or the characters-it's just wishful thinking. So much wishful thinking.**

Being trapped in someone else's memories was…disorienting, to say the least. Even for the owner of said memories. Kantarou and Haruka were snapped suddenly back into awareness, and found themselves blinking through a sleepy pair of eyes up at a scowling face seamed with lines, crows-feet pinching the corners of drooping eyelids. They would have both jumped at the rapid transition in point of view if they had been able.

"Waah!" the younger Kantarou jolted into a sitting position, nearly striking the other person in the face. The two men watching through his eyes felt his heart hammering against his thin chest. Haruka would have snorted if he could have. This was at least still part of the master that he was familiar with. A rap on the boy's head with a rough fist brought him to complete alertness, and he quickly settled to his knees and bowed in apology to the person responsible for waking them up.

"I'm sorry, Elder Aunt…I didn't mean to sleep so late…," Haruka felt a tingle of interest as his line of sight settled on the elderly woman's face again from the floor. The lines on her face didn't seem to be the result of a bad temperament, which was more than he could say for the other members of the Ichinomiya family he had seen so far. She sighed and her mouth quirked into a brief smile, before resuming its solemn expression. Her silver hair reminded him of Kantarou himself, although in her case it was from age.

"I heard that you were brought in late last night…and that you missed another ritual by the head priests. You know better than anyone that you are only here on sufferance, Kantarou. They really will be more than happy to replace you with another child if they need to….and I know you don't want that." She put one rough hand on the young man's silver hair and tousled it gently to soften her scolding words. "I know it isn't fair, but it's the only life you have available to you. Where else would you go? I'm sure your mother had her reasons for leaving you here with us like this. After all, she is my niece as well."

Kantarou and Haruka both felt the youngster's body tense a little at her words, and then his shoulders slumped as he sighed. She rapped him on the head again with a gnarled fist before rising creakily to her knees, smoothing the plain kimono free of smudges of dust and ink.

"They would probably treat you better if you just did what you were supposed to, Kantarou. In another five years you could be a fully-fledged exorcist of the Ichinimiya family."

The young Kantarou bit his lip to prevent a reply from escaping. How could he tell anyone in this household how he felt about the thought of becoming an exorcist or priest like his uncles or so-called cousins? Youkai were the only creatures he could talk to-it disgusted him to be forced to participate in seeking out and destroying them even when they did no harm. And…he didn't like channeling.

Many spirits were benign, and being able to communicate with them was undoubtedly useful…but the ones he was often forced to lure out or channel when working with the priests were powerful, rage-filled entities. It was terrifying to lose control of his body, and he had started to worry that he would have to be destroyed himself if he was possessed deeply enough.

Even as a boy he had no illusions about the costs of having strong spiritual powers-especially without formal training. The training was honestly one of the other big reasons he hadn't run away yet-sleeping in a forest was more appealing than living in this house.

His great-aunt took his silence as contrition on his truant behavior, and patted his shoulder before shuffling towards the door.

"I think you have a lot on your young shoulders, but even your mother trusted that you could handle this, or she would have stayed here with you. We all recognize that you have unusually strong powers….so it is natural that the other priests and exorcists will be hard on you. They just want to make sure you have discipline. Work hard-I know you will make the family proud someday." With that, she left.

The adult Kantarou felt the familiar sadness and self-loathing welling up within him. He hadn't even tried to get anyone to understand him in that household, he realized. Perhaps someone would have cared for him if he had tried harder….but no. His great-aunt was effectively one of the matriarchs of the house, so no one would dare go against her if she wanted to take time to be nice to the bastard child that everyone else scorned. Perhaps they thought it was out of pity, although he knew better.

Looking back at this memory, he regretted it now. That had been one of the last times he had talked to his great-aunt….really, it was one of the last times he had spoken to anyone in the household. _Great….being trapped in this memory is making me remember things I really didn't want to…although it ended up better that I had no attachments, in the end._

Once she left, Haruka and Kantarou watched as the younger man shook himself out of thought and shuffled over to the small writing desk, focusing on the picture that Haruka had been trying to get a glimpse of the night before.

A pair of young women, perhaps still in their teens, posed in matching kimonos with the Ichinomiya family crest on them. What caught Haruka's undivided attention was that one of them looked so very much like Kantarou-if Kantarou had been born a girl. There was no question that this must have been his mother-only the dark tint of the black-and-white image indicated that their coloring differed. Otherwise, the exorcist looked like a (slightly) masculine copy of his mother.

The boy's body sighed, and then the eyes turned to the bracelet glinting faintly in the dim light of the room as it sat next to the image. Kantarou remembered all over again how it had been the only thing his so-called mother had left with him when she abandoned him. He still felt the same cascade of negative and positive emotions thinking about her now that he knew his younger self was feeling in this memory as he examined the jewelry closely, pressing his fingers against the cool metal.

A shiver of apprehension crept up the boy's spine, and he clutched the bracelet tightly for a moment before loosening his hand. Although he didn't forgive his mother for leaving him to bear her punishment in the household alone, as a bastard child and as a channeler, he was still young enough to seek some connection between them.

A moment of thought passed, and he slowly slid the bracelet onto his thin wrist. The bells chimed gently and fell silent. He sighed-was he expecting something else to happen?-and then got to his feet and dressed in another set of thin and well-worn robes. Even if the head priest had gone light on his actual punishment, he still had to do the menial chores around the temple that would have normally gone to a servant.

It was another stigma of his uncertain parentage that he was forced to accept, even if the fault lay with the woman who had borne him. In the world's eyes, a bastard child, particularly one that looked as strange as he did compared to the other members of the family, was just as guilty of sin. In his case, more so since his appearance had meant the household had lost his mother's use as a marriage piece and as a powerful spiritualist in her own right.

The clatter of cooking sounds and voices raised in the hall outside roused him, and he hurried unobtrusively, head down, past priests and servants alike as he moved towards the main temple and his own chores. He was certain that at the very least he would get extra work for last night's truancy, and his expectations were rewarded-not in a good way.

Haruka and Kantarou were treated to a spectacularly boring and tiring day of menial chores, sprinkled with insults and small harassments thrown their host's way. Haruka was shocked again to see the man that he calls master today used to tolerate such treatment by acting submissive. It was no wonder that his Kantarou could guard what he is thinking so well-this place must have honed those skills to perfection. He was also surprised that his master had been accustomed to hard physical work-he had always wondered why the man went out of his way to avoid work. Seeing his family background made him understand Kantarou a little better.

Time passes differently when one relives memories-although both the exorcist and the tengu were seeing through the young Kantarou's eyes when he was awake, the time flowed so quickly it seemed to blur by. Kantarou remembered more clearly than ever why he had been so unhappy when he was growing up in the household, and Haruka learned more about the complexities that shaped the Kantarou that he knew.

Although their host didn't show signs of nerves, Kantarou had the advantage (or not) of knowing that the approaching blood moon ritual had altered the entire course of his life and he felt tension and a brooding foreknowledge creeping over his own thoughts. It was painful to see how innocent of the coming storm he had been, and to know just how much he would go through. The worst was that he couldn't remember the details-but he would have to watch through the boy-Kantarou's eyes instead.

He had already made the connection between the blood-moon ritual and the finale of the show. He didn't want to relive what happened that night. If he himself had forgotten it, then he had done so on purpose. Haruka didn't call him a tactician without reason-Kantarou could recall almost anything. If he forgot memories, it was because he wanted them to stay buried, where he didn't have to face them….and it was about to come flooding back.

Time had passed in its slippery way to both of the observers, and the morning of the last day had broken. Both men woke along with the boy from hearing a soft chiming and the feeling of thin metal trembling against his wrist. The young Kantarou brought it up to his face, wondering about the sound. A cold chill rose from the pit of his stomach to claw up his spine, sending goosebumps shivering along his body. He suddenly felt a strong foreboding, so strong he was tempted to just leave the house-no belongings or preparations-and it receded to a vague unease. He shrugged and passed it off to nerves about the upcoming ritual, and then quickly left the room to make his own required purification preparations for the night.

Kantarou wished that he could stop time or close his own eyes-anything to forget tonight. It was going to be a very long one.

**Sorry for the boring chapter-we are getting into more action (finally!) next chapter. I apologize for taking so long-graduate school can have a pretty awkward schedule, but I've been writing again. **

**Thanks for the reviews guys! They really make the story keep going-although I promise I'll finish this one regardless. **


	11. Chapter 11

The morning of the auspicious day for the ritual was cold and clear, but with a thin veil of dark grey clouds hiding the sun from view. The young Kantarou had woken up early, gripped with a strange foreboding that faded into a vague unease and curled uneasily in the pit of his stomach. He breathed deeply and told himself it was just his nerves making themselves felt before a complex ritual-channeling spirits, whether human or youkai, always held a risk.

His instincts were better than most (even if he didn't act on them most of the time), and he had always felt shivery and nervous before each of his past channeling experiences. Doing this as a child had had some advantages, since a child never really thought of things like risk or dying. But growing up…he had to start his preparations earlier and earlier just to settle his mind. He didn't think his life was worth much, particularly to his family except as a tool, but it was his, and he wanted to cling to it as long as possible.

Kantarou remembered the feeling of those long-forgotten fears as the younger version of himself tried to settle his mind and brace himself for the day ahead. They crept back into his awareness, and he wished again that he could at least his head to clear it from them.

There were several reasons why he no longer did mediumistic or channeling work as an adult, not least being the risk to his mind and body-but the biggest reason was probably related to what had happened to him during this particular ritual. Which he still couldn't remember-he was stuck watching and waiting this day out to see what exactly it was.

_So many things could have gone wrong with the ritual for it to have ended the way it did…but no matter what happened I still know it was because of my presence. Maybe I was meant to die that day. _He wondered briefly what Haruka would think of him if he knew his past-not realizing the other man was sharing the same memory alongside him.

The younger Kantarou forced his unease down to where he could (hopefully) ignore it. If he became distracted during the ritual, or if the spirit or youkai the ritual called was stronger than the channeler, there was a very real chance that his mind would be lost; overpowered and swept away by the stronger force-or even his body taken over. Worse things than these could happen to those with strong spiritual powers, but he tried not to think about it. _He _had always been strong enough…so far.

Perhaps that was one reason his mother had left him in her former place once she noticed he had similar powers. Maybe she wasn't strong enough to handle channeling powerful spirits….but still. What mother leaves her son, a child, behind to protect herself?

She still came back to the temple complex on important occasions, but beyond a few stolen peeks at her when she crossed his path (which was rare), they had no interaction with each other. He had always hoped she would look for him, at him if only for a second-but if anything her face was always cold and composed even when her eyes glanced off of him. Her eyes were a rich dark brown, nothing like her son's clear, bright red.

Really, why would she want to acknowledge him as hers when he looked the way he did? For all he knew, she might have used him to take her place in the hopes that some spirit or monster would take him back to the shadows everyone seemed to think he belonged in.

The boy tried to shake off the feelings before he began the required purification rituals for the night's ceremony. Channeling demanded both a pure body and pure, strong state of mind. Although he was used to the frigid water for bathing this time of the year, Kantarou and Haruka still seemed to feel the deep chill of it in his bones as they watched through his eyes, felt his pale skin tense and form defensive goosebumps.

A sharp herbal odor invaded the boy's nose as he rinsed himself off, sluicing icy water over his white hair, and Kantarou now remembered that he had often been required to use particular herbs when cleaning himself before channeling. These were believed to loosen the link between mind and body, making it easier for a spirit to find its way in-and easier to sever the mind from its owner.

Haruka only noticed the sharp bitter smell, which would have been even worse to his own sensitive nose, and made a mental note to ask Kantarou at some point why he would bathe just to make himself smell more pungent.

The day crawled by for Kantarou and Haruka as the younger man spent the majority of it by himself in a small chamber within the temple compound itself, eyes closed and breathing slowly. A passer-by would have had a difficult time observing any other movement. Haruka was amazed that his master had had enough discipline to spend an entire day fasting and meditating-the man he knew today only went without food when they didn't have money (although that happened often enough). He couldn't even imagine the man meditating for more than a few minutes before wheedling his way out of some work or trying to get Haruka to talk to him.

While Haruka thought about the oddities between his present master and the man's past self, Kantarou tried to emulate his younger self and relax into the familiar rituals, disliking them but finding an old comfort in the routine of what seemed now like a past life. It might as well have been.

He found himself increasingly torn between wishing he could just wake up to being almost curious about reliving this memory, finding out what had really happened to him the night he had received his scar-although it was the sort of morbid curiosity that compels men to explore terrors better left alone in dark rooms. He well knew it was the sort of curiosity that led to regrets afterward. But still… it wasn't like he could change any of the events that had occurred in the past.

Although the passing of time during the day had been forgotten, the soft tread of padded footsteps alerted the boy (and his observers), and his crimson eyes opened slowly, revealing fading light in the small temple cell. Dusk was already crawling its way over the sky, then. He didn't turn around for a moment, savoring the last few moments of calm. He knew it was likely one of his uncles, finally come to bring him for the trek to the ritual's location.

Tonight, it wouldn't be held on the temple grounds itself. It was considered too dangerous to be held near the family compound or close to the central portion of the village. No, tonight they would be trekking back up the very trail that he had been dragged down so recently, to the supposed protection of the cliff above the village, picketed by the ancient pine forest that loomed over their bowl of a valley.

He had mixed feelings about that-it felt more like his own territory, which made him feel a little stronger; but it also made him think about his old teacher and the old man's warnings about the youkai that lurked and sheltered within those trees.

It had taken them an entire week after the decision to hold the ritual to tell him the location it would be held at-the younger Kantarou and his two observers didn't fail to notice that the other priests and family members avoided contact with him after his last escape attempt. It could have just been the usual treatment to put someone like him in his 'rightful place' as someone of no consequence, but none of them thought so. It was more like they didn't want him to know what was going on around him, in case he tried to escape again.

Still, he would have noticed something going on regardless-he might have been terrible at following his intuition, but it didn't make him unobservant or stupid (he just made stupid decisions).

The villagers had been growing increasingly worried over the past two weeks-enough that even someone kept away from anything or anyone remotely important would have noticed that something was going on. Whispers and rumors spread through the household from the servants like the smoke before a wildfire, that a powerful and undeniably _evil_ spirit or youkai was seen stalking along the village's borders, hiding in the shadows of the forest.

Although livestock had always been prone to disappearances in their valley, courtesy of predators and even roaming bandits (and the occasional small youkai), children had started disappearing in the past few weeks. The young man's thoughts turned dark as he remembered that last night one of the smaller families on the outskirts of the village had vanished, their home stripped effortlessly to shreds by something very obviously not human. Something just as obviously very strong. The servants had enjoyed a round of horrified gossip focusing on the fact that no whole remains of the family had been found-but the site had been spattered and misted in crimson.

Kantarou and Haruka could follow the younger boy's train of thought, and both felt their host give an unconscious shiver as the light dwindled and left only the hollow leaping of torches sparsely arranged along the temple hallway.

The feeling of foreboding from the young man grew stronger, and the older exorcist wished he could scream at his younger self to just _listen to his intuition for once in his stupid life_-it was obviously something he had long had issues with. He told himself he'd work on it if they ever got out of this mess. Unfortunately, he also knew what his younger self didn't and that his feelings of apprehension were going to be absolutely justified in tonight's ritual.

A dry voice, irritable and officious sounding, broke through the young Kantarou's thoughts and distracted his observers.

"Kantarou…it's time to move. We need you to go finish your final preparations. Come to the main temple courtyard when you are ready-there are a few last procedures that need to be done before leaving the grounds…for your own safety tonight, of course," the man added smoothly. Both versions of Kantarou marveled at how sincere his uncles could sound when they made an effort. It was a pity it was wasted on him. He knew that whatever else they did tonight, it surely wouldn't have any positive benefits for his own safety.

And still…as much as he hated the household and wished himself elsewhere, he wanted to help his village. Somewhere inside the young Kantarou still secretly hoped to be acknowledged or accepted into his family-using his powers to help protect the people in their village was the best he could do. A faint chime and a shiver on his wrist caught his eyes, and then the uncertainty and ominous feeling crept back over him.

Kantarou and Haruka knew the meaning of the bells singing on the bracelet, but both were helpless to do anything except watch through his eyes and catch glimmers of the younger man's thoughts and mood.

With a sigh that was internally echoed by his observers, the boy heaved himself to his feet, legs cramping and tingling slightly from the long hours spent kneeling and sitting in preparation just for…for what exactly? He still didn't really know, but he had already made his decision to try to stay in the household a little while longer. Perhaps things would change, and if he succeeded tonight his uncles would finally consider formally training him to be an exorcist of the family.

One more sigh lifted his thin chest up and down again, and then he trailed slowly out of the small chamber, his red eyes adjusting to the dim light of the torches spread across the temple's main hall.

The man who had called him had already disappeared, silently treading away to wherever the rest of the priests were waiting for him. The rest of his uncles would be included in the group, and he found himself hurrying his steps, automatically hoping to avoid causing himself any trouble from them later. He quickly found himself in a small chamber behind one of the large shrine rooms, screens set up for changing clothing or ritual cleansing.

The ceremonial robes he was supposed to wear were kept here in the temple itself, and he quickly stripped off his plain, well-worn robes and picked up the new regalia. There was really no other word for it-it seemed like he was intended to be used as very tempting, very _visible _bait to attract the youkai tonight.

The underrobe was crimson, with silver threads edging the sleeves and throat, and the overrobe was something he never would have picked out for himself…heavy white fabric patterned with crimson chrysanthemums, with additional silver threads woven throughout. It looked like metallic rain shining over the embroidered petals. It looked virtually guaranteed to glow in the dark, too. He was sure it wasn't a coincidence.

Both Kantarou and Haruka caught the younger boy's disgust towards the robes, and Kantarou wished briefly that he could have snickered out loud-his younger self had no idea he would enjoy wearing those sorts of flamboyant robes whenever he could in the future. Haruka was hoping that if everything worked out and they got out of this mess in one piece, he could turn the tables on his so-called master and tease him back when required.

They watched the boy struggle into the heavy robes, not used to wearing such rich clothes (yet)-and both enjoyed a last moment of amusement as he examined himself in a warped looking glass and then preened briefly. Haruka felt a little happier, just for the moment, as he saw the sort of Kantarou he was used to.

He was sometimes a vain master, for all of his complaining about his odd looks. The humor quickly faded as they watched the younger exorcist's expression turn nervous-making him look even younger than he already was-and then settle back into a composed mask. And then, there was no more time left.

Kantarou and Haruka saw their line of vision turn towards the direction of the main temple, dark and seeming almost alive in the night as torches shimmered and blurred in a line in front of the large ascending stairs towards the gaping mouth of the central altar. Then they were walking down and drawing closer, the temple feeling almost overwhelmingly like some predatory creature waiting for them to walk into its jaws.

_Ugh…what is it with the creepy gates and entrances throughout this whole damned ordeal? _Kantarou found himself thinking absently as he watched the main temple loom into his current line of sight. The eyes they were looking out of turned and then he saw one large fire set in one of the pits of the temple grounds to the side of the main building. The priests, his uncles included, were gathered around it in a rough circular pattern.

They all focused on the approaching youngster, and Kantarou felt himself trying to shrink back and cower instinctively at the scrutiny, although he knew he couldn't do anything. He didn't have any control over this body, after all. His younger self faltered slightly mid-step and then recovered quickly, walking forward firmly on legs that were trembling underneath the heavy clothes. The boy felt grateful for the first time for the weight of them-it felt almost like the stiff robes were holding him upright.

The firelight draw dark shadows and planes across the waiting men's faces, making them look like grim statues in formation around the blaze. The man closed to him gave him a curt nod, the light playing across his face and revealing him as the head priest of the temple-the oldest uncle. The younger man felt another cold chill trickle down his spine as he moved into the group of priests, a single bright spot of color against their sober ceremonial robes.

The head priest scrutinized him carefully, a permanent frown etched onto his lean features. "You at least look adequate for the ceremony." Kantarou's younger self bowed his head respectfully, although the observers in his head knew it was mocking. He kept his head down so that his hair shadowed his expression. The last thing he needed was for his uncles to find fault in him with something this important to the village.

The cold voice interrupted his beginning train of thought. "Kantarou…there is one last component to our preparations before we set out for the ceremony." The head priest smiled thinly down at the bowed head in front of him. No one saw the quick gleam of malice pass through his eyes.

"As you may have heard, tonight's ceremony will help us defeat and subjugate the youkai that has been terrorizing our village of late. The Ichinomiya family's powers will be stronger during the blood-moon, which is why we have waited this long-to ensure our success."

Kantarou's body twitched a little at the mention of the youkai, but he remained silent. Haruka and his older self wondered at the choice of words. The Ichinomiya family was supposedly a branch that followed Buddhist traditions-and powers used for peaceful purposes wouldn't be likely to increase during a time of negative energies such as a blood moon. Something seemed a bit twisted in the priests' approach to handling the supernatural, particularly a case where the entire village was being affected.

The head priest took the lack of response as a sign that the younger boy was listening. "We also have to take an extra set of precautions involving _your _role in this. You are the only person in the household who holds mediumistic abilities strong enough to attract and capture a high-level youkai through possession. We want you to allow yourself to be possessed by this creature-it will be easier for us to capture and control it if it is limited to a human vessel than if it remains in a spirit form." He paused and looked hard at the silver head in front of him.

"To do this successfully….we will need to bind your powers before leading you to the ceremony site so that once possessed, you do not lose control and become destructive. It would be a…great pity…for the family if we were forced to eliminate you. This is for your own protection as well as ours. Oh, and Kantarou…this isn't a choice." The priest raised his hands and quickly chanted under his breath, and before the younger man could complete a response his voice froze in his throat as his body suddenly locked up. He was paralyzed.

The head priest motioned one of the lesser priests (one of his cousins, this time, both Kantarous managed to note) forward out of the huddle of dark robes. The lesser priest carried a small square of heavy silk which he carefully unwrapped as he strode forward, revealing the silver shine of a ritual dagger. Without any hesitation the head priest picked it up and then reached out and gripped one of the young Kantarou's wrists, flipping it so that the soft underside faced upwards.

"Don't fret yourself, boy….this is just to ensure that we have control over your powers in case anything goes wrong. You should know that channeling and possession are dangerous…and I'm sure you wouldn't want to risk anyone in the village, would you?" The head priest smiled thinly and then sharply drew the blade against the boy's skin, leaving a red line behind. The blood beaded up and ran across the blade's surface, which began to glow a dull, sullen red. The priest chanted under his breath once more, and the glow intensified and surrounded the boy in a red halo before sinking closer to his skin and then disappearing. The blood had disappeared off of the blade's surface, leaving it cold and silver once more.

Motioning the lesser priest back over, he carefully re-wrapped the knife in the silk and then ordered it to be taken back into the temple.

The young Kantarou's body couldn't move, but he could still see what was in his line of vision. He couldn't control the question and unease in his eyes as he looked at the disappearing dagger and his oldest uncle's silhouette against the firelight. The older priest looked back at him coldly.

"That is a safeguard. It holds the power of your blood within it-we can use it to stop you or destroy you if need be. If you do your job properly tonight, we will not need to consider using it. I suggest you turn your thoughts towards how to keep yourself in control long enough to get the job done." He snapped his fingers together and the boy found his body moving without his own will, straightening up and turning to face the dark wall that was the forest.

_I really don't like where this is going at all….why, oh why didn't I run away and live in the woods when I had a chance?, _the older Kantarou thought as his eyesight turned unwillingly towards the woods. He was starting to be surprised that he had survived the combined machinations of his family and the youkai that had given him the scar…considering what the aftermath had been, he was shocked no one had killed him outright.

Haruka felt a mixture of rage and relief as he felt his (much younger) master's body move to face the forest. Sealing the boy's powers and then threatening to kill him if he failed to control the youkai's possession of himself seemed deliberately cruel. The Kantarou he knew today wouldn't allow anyone or anything to come to harm unless it was himself-he could feel the tension and anxiety thrumming through the younger version's body and mind. The only reason he felt relief was that at least the memory would finally culminate soon-and he at least knew that his master had survived this, regardless of how traumatic it might have been. The sooner they got through this, the sooner they could try to break free. Still…Haruka felt sorry that Kantarou had to relive this. It was hard on him to feel the younger Kantarou's thoughts and emotions and not be able to change the past-he knew it had to be much harder on the exorcist himself.

The circle of priests broke apart and they formed themselves into two lines, placing the younger boy in the front of the group. The head priest moved his fingers into a series of complex patterns, and the younger Kantarou found his feet moving forward as they all began walking out of the village and towards the dark opening of the forest.

The bells on his wrist began a tremulous chiming as they neared the edge of the treeline, sending a shiver down his spine. As the line of priests moved into the trees proper, their lanterns seemed to fade and shrink down, dwarfing the company in the presence of the ancient trees sighing overhead.

Although he couldn't control his own body, the young Kantarou suddenly felt a piercing chill run through him-he could sense the regard of something very alien. His anxiety settled into cold dread as he realized whatever it was had focused on him…and it was moving closer.


	12. Chapter 12

**So sorry for making you guys wait! I refuse to give up on a story once I start it, so I can at least promise you that I will finish this one (hopefully this semester, but now I know better than to promise . Life tends to happen. I know, I know leaving you in suspense is cruel. I am forcing myself to write faster! **

**On the plus side, in the interim I've been writing other Tactics drabbles so I might post them in between chapters…there just aren't enough Tactics fanfics. Thanks for all of the reviews guys! They are super appreciated-I feel loved. **

**Oh…although I wasn't smart enough to write this in a clearer way, from this chapter on (thankfully not many chapters with multiple randomviewpoints) Haruka and the older version of Kantarou's viewpoints are italized, with their thoughts in bold. **

The column of priests moved through the forest slowly in the dark. The few torches they carried seemed to dim the further in they moved, casting long shadows across the men's faces instead of chasing away the dark.

None of the priests spoke, but the younger Kantarou could sense that they were being constantly tracked as they walked. The forest was unnaturally silent, their footfalls sounding very loud and clumsy to his ears in the absence of the natural sounds of the trees. Only a soft shivering whispering accompanied their progress as the trees leaned and brushed limbs high overhead.

He felt like he was going to go insane if this oppressive silence continued. Not even the normal forest youkai he was used to encountering when he came here alone were stirring tonight. He couldn't even control his own body to look upwards through the canopy to see if the moon was turning to red yet.

_The older Kantarou knew enough to assume the moon hadn't had time to change completely yet-things would get much louder once the full blood moon rose high in the sky. The silence was unnerving but he preferred it to the coming squall. _

_Haruka felt uneasy and disturbed at the strange silence and the overpowering feeling that something was going to happen. His tengu instincts were rising up with the negative energy increasing as the moon rose higher in the night sky, still unseen through the screen of trees. He wondered if he would even remember what happened if he was also affected by the blood moon._

The walk through the trees seemed to stretch on, and if Kantarou had been able to look behind him it would have looked eerily like they were walking into a black void. There was only black behind them as well, adding to the effect of isolation.

The bells on the youth's wrist kept their steady chiming, and he wished that he could at least move his hand over them to keep them silent. He had often wondered what they were for, but figuring out that they seemed to respond to the presence of spirits and youkai was not in the least comforting tonight. Now he had the unpleasant knowledge that whatever was lurking in the forest was surrounding them with its presence, tracking them until….when? He had no idea what it was waiting for.

The tension rose until the silence seemed to be humming with negative energy. The younger Kantarou had no idea how the other priests seemed oblivious to the increasing pressure of the air around them, but he was starting to feel exhausted and drained from the malevolence directed at them. They seemed to crawl through the forest like insects. He had never felt quite so small before.

The priests neared the abandoned temple that his former mentor had lived in, likely not even knowing it had existed. Surprisingly enough, the negative pressure eased and the boy's breathing eased a little as they came along the trail that passed in front of the hidden dwelling. He was shocked to see several pairs of eyes gleam at him from the side path to get to the temple-a huddle of small forest youkai were crowded into the small area, watching him as he went past. They were usually shy creatures, not inclined to move in groups. Whatever had invaded this forest was strong enough to drive away or silence the original inhabitants.

The old monk who had lived in the temple must have left residual protections on the small place. It was the only thing he could think of that would leave a pocket of calm in the rising negative energy of the forest. Although he couldn't turn his head to look as they passed his former mentor's home, he wished the little youkai well. He hoped he would be able to protect them and the villagers….and he wanted to survive himself.

The heaviness returned as soon as they passed the boundaries of the old man's protection barriers. It was a mark of how powerful he had been that they still persisted after his death. The chills he had been feeling since they entered the forest suddenly increased until he felt like his insides were coated with ice as the group found itself at the fringes of the trees as they walked out onto the cliff top.

The younger man gasped internally as he finally saw the moon. It rode high in the sky, highlighting the ground on the cliff top with a sullen red glare. It was completely full, and even as they continued to walk towards the edge of the rocky ground he could see the color darkening from rusting silver to a deepening blood red.

The negative energy kept increasing, and someone as sensitive as he was could feel it swirling around them, attracted to the spiritual energy held by the priests….and by him. He wanted to close his eyes and bring up mental shields to block it out, but he was still bound by the head priest-his own uncle.

The group of priests broke from their lines once Kantarou's figure reached an open rocky patch of ground near the edge of the cliff, and they formed a large circle with the silver-haired youth at the center. The head priest quickly and carefully drew a circle of summoning in the ground with a ceremonial staff, and then he imperiously gestured with his fingers at Kantarou. With the gesture his feet drew him unwillingly into the circle, and then the priest gripped the boy's arm once more, holding it from his position safely outside of the circle.

He raised it skyward, then without any warning jabbed the palm of young Kantarou's hand with the sharpened edge of a piece of bright metal. He couldn't see exactly what it was. Blood welled up once again, and the priest held his hand over the summoning circle's lines until the fat droplets of red fell onto them.

The outline of the circle blazed suddenly into golden light once Kantarou's blood sank into the ground, forming a circle-shaped beacon of light that glowed under the ripening blood moon.

_The older Kantarou had managed to put most of the pieces of what had happened together, and was now just waiting for the end. He would at least know what exactly had happened to him-and what he had done. _

_Haruka thought uneasily to himself that to any powerful and evil youkai, it would serve exceptionally well as an all-you-can-eat sign. The negative energy of the blood moon and the surrounding youkai presence made him feel uneasy…and agitated. _

The head priest had released the youth's hand as the first drops of blood fell, leaving Kantarou effectively trapped within the circle as his spiritual energy flared up and separated him from the larger outer circle of priests ringing him in. And, with the awakening of the energy, his uncle snapped his fingers and finally released his body from the forced control it had been under.

"It's up to you now, boy. You need to make sure that the youkai possesses you completely. We do not want to destroy it, not just yet, if we can capture it and subjugate it. If it succeeds, you will be a credit to the Ichinomiya family name. If not…well, there will always be other children." The head priest stared at him with stone-hard eyes before turning his back and stalking to his place in the outer circle.

As if by signal, once he took his place all of the priests knelt and they began to whisper a chant to strengthen their collective mental defenses and erect a limited barrier around themselves for protection. Only Kantarou was to be the actual bait for this ceremony-if his part went well, then they would move in. For the time being, they waited.

The chills the boy had been feeling throughout increased into stabbing waves of negative energy, making it harder to breathe and remain upright. He knelt down to give himself more support, since he doubted his legs would be able to hold him up much longer. Now that he could move his own body again, he turned his eyes upwards just in time to see the moon at its peak. The color had shifted to a full crimson the shade of newly spilled blood on snow, and as his eyes stared upwards the wind in the trees suddenly screamed with an almost human voice and raked itself across the forest fringes, sending gravel and dirt against the priests' barrier.

The wind howled again and picked up speed, seeming to gain a mind of its own as it swirled closer to the cliff edge and to the small figure whose fine robes shone in the red light of the moon. It picked up energy and as it whirled the air within the area of the cliff top grew darker and harder to see through, as though it were slowly taking solid form. If any of the priests had been sensitive to it, they might have heard a growling whisper so deep it seemed to vibrate in the stones of the cliff itself as the wind spun.

The young Kantarou couldn't control a shudder as the wind seemed to playfully curl around the edges of the summoning circle, tasting the golden energy that had sprung from his blood and sending black flickers through the bright curtain of light. He could no longer see the outer circle of priests-the blackness had given a rough shape to the winds, and he realized he could hear something trying to speak to him.

The winds picked up speed and formed a black cyclone around the summoning circle, a storm of black swallowing the beacon of Kantarou's spiritual energy, and he knew that whatever it was, it was coming for him. Fast. His fingers clenched in his robes for a moment, and then he steeled himself, clearing his thoughts until nothing was left except an empty (forced) calm.

And then, he opened his mind completely, offering himself as an available vessel for any creature strong enough to try and take it over. As soon as his mental shields dropped and he threw himself open, the beacon of energy surrounding him hissed and crackled as it wavered and then disappeared into a churning blackness as the winds moved inside the circle.

_Haruka's hackles would have gone up if he had been in his own body at the sheer strength of the evil energy contained in the black mass of winds. It didn't feel like any youkai he had encountered before…he didn't know what it was. He just felt a sudden surge of want and need coming from the blackness as the winds surged inwards towards their young host. He suddenly didn't want to finish watching what happened…but he felt a tug of familiarity at the same time as he watched the black mass coalesce and advance. **Why does this power feel somewhat familiar?** _

_As Haruka dug at his own thoughts, his attention snapped back to what had happened before he had passed out and found himself buried in this memory. The pillar! Kantarou's scar and the pillar had both glowed a malignant black….very similar to the mass of darkness growling and streaming towards him. _

_The older Kantarou himself simply felt resignation at this point. There was no stopping past events-but maybe he would at least learn something that could help them out of their current situation back in the manor their actual bodies were still trapped in. Seeing the black winds screaming towards them made him think there was some link between this youkai and their current real life predicament. He steeled himself to find out as the winds shredded through the last bright curtains of his younger self's own spiritual light and spiraled tightly inwards._

Kantarou felt the air around him grow close and stifling, but somehow it grew even colder until it felt as if it were freezing inside of his chest. He watched the darkness stream inwards towards him and tighten its rotation, growing smaller and denser around his thin body. The icy voice of the winds snarled and rumbled around him, making his bones vibrate with the intensity directed at him.

Just before he could make out physical words, the violent mass of wind and blackness seemed to stop and rear up for a single moment. He had enough time to look upwards and see the moon one last time, glistening red in a heavy dull sky. There were no stars. The black winds wrapped around him in a tight vortex he could not see through-it was as solid as the cliff he was standing on, and raged upwards into a column so high it blocked his views of the forest and village on either side. There was only the spinning black, its snarling resonating voice, and the red moon.

As he looked up, the mass seemed to throb violently, like a heartbeat, and then it twisted and fell down towards him in a vicious torrent of nothingness-just a solid dark given mass. He tried to keep his eyes open until the last, but his heart faltered as the sky was blotted out and there was no light left-just a writhing, squirming, howling darkness. If a furious madness had a physical form, this was as close as it could get. His eyes slipped shut as he tried to force calm into himself before it hit. His nerves struggled briefly before he recovered himself, but it was enough to create a minute of weakness. The darkness struck the instant he wavered.

Burning, freezing pain wrapped itself around him in the next heartbeat, thick and cloying. Instead of being hit and torn apart by a raging whirlwind of vicious energies, he felt like he was slowly falling into icy quicksand. His senses were completely assaulted as his limbs lost their strength. He didn't know if his eyes were open or not-there was only squirming twisting blackness against his eyes, and he couldn't tell if it was his eyelids or not. Thick tendrils of the energy forced their way through his nose, his throat; he was breathing darkness, tasting it. It felt like slimy velvet and tasted like…soil, rotting leaves, and ash. A thousand other sensations and tastes and sounds invaded him as he started to struggle to maintain himself, feeling his mind beginning to fragment and scatter. He couldn't even tell if his body was still in one piece.

_Wait…I'm supposed to let go completely. I'm __**supposed **__to let this happen...God I don't want to! I don't want to lose myself! _Kantarou cried out to himself inwardly, trying to force his body to listen, his mind to refocus even as he realized that he was supposed to let this happen to him-it was to help the other villagers and the Ichinomiya family. It could help him, if he succeeded. What was the worst that could happen?

_I'd cease to exist…although that probably isn't the worst thing that can happen to the household or the village…hell, it's probably not the worst thing that could happen to me in this world, with powers like these. _Kantarou settled his thoughts back to where they needed to be to finish the ritual of possession. Calming, calming…he brutally squashed the thoughts screaming at him to fight back or flee, anything to just survive and live, back into a canvas of blank mind. He lowered the mental defenses he had accidentally brought up with his wave of fear and opened his mind back to the blackness that already had him encased in its icy grip.

_**Don't let go! **Kantarou and Haruka's thoughts overlapped this time as they felt the same horror creep over them with the encroaching darkness, the younger boy's thoughts dimming and being scattered with the sensory assault. It was like feeling him begin to disappear-both had been briefly relieved when he fought back. Now he was deliberately inviting the youkai in deeper to take him over completely-to the point where he might be lost beyond redemption. It was small comfort to the now-older Kantarou that he knew full well he survived. If it was bad enough for him to forget this experience completely, it must have been hellish. _

_Haruka just felt acute unease at the thought of a youkai this powerful possessing his master, regardless of whether it was in the past or not. He wasn't able to do anything here, which meant that both the younger version of the man and his current master would have to go through it alone. _

Kantarou didn't know what he was expecting to happen when he opened his mind again-all of his previous channeling and possession experiences were nothing like this. He had always been in control, permitting the interaction but managing it. This was a complete submission, giving up all control to tempt the youkai into the helpless human vessel.

The pressure around his body, against his senses continued its relentless assault. This time with his mind open to the touch of the youkai's, he felt rather than heard the words that the darkness was snarling and rumbling through the earth, the wind, his very bones. The cold intensified even more than he thought possible, to the point he felt even his bones were burning with a frozen fire that paralyzed him even more.

With a sudden stab of exquisitely cold pain, he felt the youkai touch his mind, stretch out its tendrils of energy to explore what he had to offer it. Although he felt himself slipping, there was enough of him left to feel surprised when the darkness actually spoke to him directly.

_Boyy….what do you feaarr? _It spoke in his mind, its voice resonant and painful, and so cold-like rocks grinding against each other slowly in frozen earth. He felt another stab of that icy pain in his chest, his heart, as the darkness explored him.

_Ahhhhh….._it sighed with venomous pleasure. _I need a body, child. I'm going to take yours…..you are a powerful child, for being so young. I hunger so much….and have grown too weak to directly take what I need….until you came here._

Kantarou felt it probing through his mind, his memories-all of him as it continued to speak. Through the pain of the dark voice he managed still to wonder why it couldn't directly attack. Hadn't it taken an entire family?

The dark youkai sensed his questioning thought towards it. He flinched as it gave the equivalent of a chuckle, dark pain scraping through his mind again as it did so.

_Ahh…normally I do not have a form. I am winds, wings, tendrils of pure madness. I can amplify the madness and darkness and rage within living things. I feed on blood and flesh for strength, but to get these I must drive my prey to utter madness first. That family….those were humans? So much darkness buried inside of them, begging to be opened.….all I did was explore them, much as I am exploring you. They killed themselves….unfortunately…_and here Kantarou caught a flash of alien regret…._I cannot directly kill without a body to inhabit. With fresh blood or flesh I can take on the form of divine winds…black and powerful…but it isn't enough. Driving lives to madness, murder, ruin, darkness…I want more. I want to become stronger and darker…so much more so. I want to turn the world black. _It chuckled again, sending pain through his head again. _Since you are going to help me do this so very willingly…..sitting here dressed like a gift, mind and powers open to anything strong enough to consume you….I shall give you a gift. _

Kantarou gasped as the dark pain stabbed through his heart and mind once more. He couldn't feel anything else in his body anymore-the darkness had invaded every part of him and the cold numbed everything. The pain bit deep, and he would have gladly lost consciousness if he had had the option-but his mind was not in his own control anymore. The creeping dark of the youkai was slowly, meticulously taking over heartbeat by heartbeat. The pain flashed once more and then lifted, and he felt a brief moment of relief.

_I know what is buried in your heart too….shall I give you a gift? I will take your body regardless…but so you know that even madness can be fair….I will give to you what is in your heart. You may not even know it was there, but I hear every black whisper, every dark thought born of rage and hate, pain and fear. Everyone is so cruel to those with power….they can sense your difference from them, oh yesss. Fear gives birth to darkness and cruelty as well…I know very well because I bring the darkness to life. For the gift of your body and powers, I will remove those who have been cruel to you….and it will be your hands that I use. They will know at the last a dark and cruel punishment by this form, and madness and fear will steal their strength, their hope, as their blood spills and feeds me more power. _

Kantarou felt so numbed and frozen at this point he had trouble understanding the words that scraped and thrummed through his mind-but a blinding horror crept over him as he realized what the youkai intended to do with his body.

"God, no! Just kill me, but don't do this….please….I don't want anything.." he screamed in his mind, hoping to get a different response. The dark presence around him, within him seemed to throb briefly before he felt the answering sting of its reply.

_You may not even be aware of your own darkness, child…but it is there, and I have tasted it. I will bring it out and use this body to make it rain blood if that will give me more strength….you have so much power that you are not even aware of, little human. Your own darkness, your hate and pain have stunted you. I will use everything. You are not like other humans….you should understand the respect I pay you by speaking to you this way. But I am wasting time while the moon grows ripe and bleeds….enough of these small courtesies. And now….it is time for you to disappear._

Kantarou felt numb and stupid, terror for what might happen filling what was left of his mind. He knew he should try to fight back at this point, somehow try to stop the dark youkai from taking him over completely. As he struggled out of his cold-hazed shock and strained towards clearer thoughts, an explosion of darkness ripped through him. He tried to fight and felt the sliding, writhing black squirm through his mind, leaving behind nothing where it went. His memories faded, knowledge, all that made him Kantarou slipped away like as the dark washed over it. His senses were full of the violent dark, his body held in it, filled by it, engulfed completely. With his last failing thoughts, he prayed that his family could stop him. Everything went black for the last time, and then he knew no more.

_Stunned and horrified, Kantarou and Haruka watched and listened as the youkai of madness finished speaking to the younger exorcist, and the living darkness exploded. Their sight went black, senses full of the taste and smell and feel of solid dark as the young Kantarou's mind disappeared. He was gone-but somehow they were still observing, still feeling sensations through his body. _

_**God no, I don't want to watch this anymore…please just let it end here…**Kantarou pleaded to himself although he knew it was useless. It was obvious now that this wasn't going to end until the entire tragedy played itself out. They were going to be stuck watching through the youkai's eyes as it used Kantarou's body…and they had no way of knowing if the priests could stop him or not. _


End file.
